News

NASPAA to Honor Jin for Service as Pi Alpha Alpha Adviser

September 11, 2018

By Pamela Stallsmith

Myung Hun Jin, Ph.D., chair of the Wilder School’s Master of Public Administration program, is the recipient of the 2018 Pi Alpha Alpha Chapter Advisor Award of Excellence from the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA).

Jin will be honored at NASPAA’s annual conference in Atlanta, Ga., October 10-13. NASPAA is the global standard in public service education with a twofold mission to ensure excellence in education and training for public service and to promote the ideal of public service.

NASPAA is the membership organization of graduate education programs in public policy, public affairs, public administration, and public and nonprofit management. NASPAA is also the recognized accreditor of master's degree programs in these fields. Its nearly 300 members, including the Wilder School, are located across the U.S. and in 24 countries around the globe.

"We value the hard work that public service education faculty, administrators, and students put into teaching, researching and practicing public service," said Laurel McFarland, executive director of NASPAA. "It is a pleasure for us to highlight their contributions."

Pi Alpha Alpha is the national honor society for public administration students. Jin has served as the VCU chapter’s adviser for six years.

“I am deeply honored by this award,” Jin said. “Student success is at the core of the Wilder School’s mission, and Pi Alpha Alpha offers students so many opportunities for public service, networking and professional development.”

Jin is an outstanding mentor to students, said Wilder School Interim Dean Susan T. Gooden, Ph.D.

“Though Dr. Jin maintains an ambitious portfolio of scholarship, which includes numerous publications and a robust research partnership with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, he devotes much of his time to advising students,” she said. “His passion for the growth and welfare of his students and his dedication to the advancement of public administration serve as an inspiration to us all.”