Why Public Service?
14 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 3 years ago - ★★★★★ - 9 ratingsEver wanted to advise a president, serve in Congress, or help craft public policy behind the scenes — but just don’t know how to get there, or which path is right for you?
Then “Why Public Service?” is the podcast for you. Each week, we dive into the minds of men and women who chose to help improve our nation through a career in public service— whether through government service, working for think tanks, advocacy groups, or philanthropy.
This podcast is a product of the R Street Institute, a free market think tank in Washington, D.C.
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Episodes
Michael Stern, Point of Order
November 17, 2020 10:00 - 17 minutes - 15.9 MBMichael Stern is the creator of PointOfOrder.com, a site that explains and assesses complex legal issues involving Congress. Mike is also a policy advisor to the 501c(3) group, Good Government Now, and he serves on the board of the Committee for a Fiscal Responsibility Amendment. Mike is also a founding member of the Balanced Budget Amendment Task Force, and sits on the Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council. Previously, he served as a senior counsel in the United States o...
Terry Ryan, BLUUM
November 10, 2020 10:00 - 23 minutes - 21.7 MBTerry Ryan is chief executive officer of BLUUM. It is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization in Idaho dedicated to ensuring Idaho’s children reach their full potential by cultivating great leaders and innovative schools. Terry has been in public service for more than two decades. He has been a teacher in Poland and conducted research on education policy in Poland and the United Kingdom. He spent more than a decade at the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation, where he advanced education refor...
Ashley Poling, Postal Regulatory Commission
November 03, 2020 10:00 - 19 minutes - 18 MBAshley Poling is a commissioner on the Postal Regulatory Commission. She was nominated by Donald J. Trump and confirmed by the United States Senate on Thursday, August 1 for the remainder of a six-year term that expires November 22, 2024. Prior to joining the Commission, Ms. Poling served as the Director of Governmental Affairs and Senior Counsel to Ranking Member Gary C. Peters (D-MI) on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee where she advised Senator Peter...
Cheryl Miller, Hertog Foundation
October 27, 2020 09:00 - 14 minutes - 13.3 MBCheryl Miller is director of the Hertog Foundation. It is an organization that offers educational programs for outstanding individuals who seek to influence the intellectual, civic and political life of the United States. Previously, Cheryl worked in the executive office of the president, at the New York Times, the American Enterprise Institute and the America’s Future Foundation. Follow the Hertog Foundation on Twitter @HertogFDN. Want to recommend a guest for the podcast? E-mai...
Andy Rotherham, Bellwether Education Partners
October 20, 2020 09:00 - 17 minutes - 16.5 MBAndy Rotherham is co-founder and partner at Bellwether Education Partners, a national nonprofit organization working to support educational innovation and improve outcomes for underserved students. He is a contributing editor to U.S. News & World Report and a senior editor at The 74, an education news and analysis publication, and blogs at Eduwonk.com. Andy previously worked in the White House and started two other education organizations. Follow him on Twitter at @arotherham. Wa...
Cynthia Richie Terrell, RepresentWomen
October 13, 2020 09:00 - 18 minutes - 16.7 MBCynthia Richie Terrell is the founder and executive director of RepresentWomen, an organization that advocates for reforms to advance women’s representation and leadership in the United States. Cynthia has been in public service for much of her life. She helped found FairVote, a group that is helping update America’s election laws, and she has worked for presidential, congressional, state and local campaigns. Follow her on Twitter @CynthiaRTerrell. Want to recommend a guest for the...
Carlos Mark Vera, Pay Our Interns
October 06, 2020 09:00 - 12 minutes - 11.7 MBCarlos Mark Vera is executive director and co-founder of Pay Our Interns. It is an organization that seeks to ensure that everyone has equitable access to professional career paths through the implementation of paid internships nationwide. Carlos co-created Pay Our Interns in 2016, and already the group has had great success. In 2019, it convinced Congress to pony up $31 million to pay interns who work for Capitol Hill. Carlos previously interned for Congress and in the White House,...
Megan Reiss, U.S. Senate
September 29, 2020 09:00 - 17 minutes - 15.8 MBMegan Reiss is a national security policy advisor for Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah). Megan previously was a senior fellow in national security at the R Street Institute, and a senior editor at Lawfare, an online publication that explores the nexus between national security, the law and legal institutions. Megan also has worked for Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska, and earned her doctorate in national security studies at the University of Texas at Austin. Follow her on Twitter @MegReiss. Wa...
Amber McReynolds, National Vote at Home Institute
September 22, 2020 09:00 - 25 minutes - 23.1 MBAmber McReynolds is the chief executive officer of Vote at Home. It is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to improving voter engagement, reducing election-related costs and making elections more secure. Amber has been in public service for nearly 20 years, and previously was the director of elections in Denver, Colorado. She is the coauthor of the book "When Women Vote" and serves on the National Task Force on Election Crises. Follow her on Twitter @AmberMcReynolds. ...
Mario Beovides, NALEO Educational Fund
September 15, 2020 09:00 - 16 minutes - 14.9 MBMario Beovides is director of policy initiatives at NALEO Educational Fund, a non-profit, non-partisan organization that facilitates full Latino participation in the American political process, from citizenship to public service. Mario has held multiple positions in public service, including working for a U.S. senator, a commissioner and a school board member in Miami. He also was a field director for the LIBRE Initiative, a group advocating for the principles of economic freedom to...
Michael Petrilli, Thomas B. Fordham Institute
September 08, 2020 09:00 - 16 minutes - 15 MBMichael Petrilli is president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, a think tank that studies education policy and promotes educational excellence for every child in America. In addition to leading a think-tank, for many years Mr. Petrilli has been a research fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution, the executive editor of Education Next journal, and a Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Education Commission of the States. He also has held positions in the U.S Department of ...
Marci Harris, POPVOX
September 01, 2020 09:00 - 16 minutes - 15.4 MBMarci Harris is CEO and co-founder of POPVOX, a company that develops technologies and platforms to better connect the public and government officials, and to improve governance. She has served as a tornado recovery coordinator in Tennessee, worked as legislative counsel for a member of Congress, and held internships with a federal judge, as well as the U.S. attorneys office and a subcommittee in the U.S. House of Representatives. She also has been a think-tanker at Harvard’s Ash C...
Yuval Levin, American Enterprise Institute
August 25, 2020 09:00 - 14 minutes - 13 MBYuval Levin is director of Social, Cultural, and Constitutional Studies at the American Enterprise Institute. Under President George W. Bush, he served as a member of the White House domestic policy staff and was also executive director of the President’s Council on Bioethics. He is the founding and current editor of National Affairs and is also the author of several books on political theory and public policy, most recently A Time to Build: From Family and Community to Congress and...
Trailer - Why Public Service?
August 19, 2020 17:36 - 1 minute - 1.22 MBHave you ever wanted to advise a president? Serve in Congress? Help craft public policy behind the scenes? Every week "Why Public Service?" will introduce you to these career paths, and more, and the color cast of characters behind them who chose to improve our nation through public service. This podcast is a product of the R Street Institute, a free market think tank in Washington, D.C. The first episode drops on August 26th. --- Learn more about the R Street Institute ...