Alumni Highlights

Notes from the Sanford Community

An excerpt from Chad Sarchio PPS'92 address to the graduates during the 2026 Sanford commencement ceremony. 

More than 2,000 people attended Sanford’s graduation on at Cameron Indoor Stadium on May 8^th to celebrate nearly 400 public policy graduates.  From teaching award recipients to the Terry Sanford Leadership Award winners, to the hooding of our PhD recipients, to our amazing student speaker, our graduates and faculty dazzled the assembled family and friends. 

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In lieu of a Dean’s blog this month, we share an excerpt of Chad Sarchio PPS’92 address to the graduates. Chad shared an inspired and heart-felt “public service announcement” about the value and opportunities offered by a career in government service.  He also shared insights into the how pressure and momentum can positively fuel every stage of a career. 

Chad Sarchio is an attorney and federal civil servant. His remarks at Sanford’s commencement ceremony, excerpted below, are his own and do not represent the official views of the federal government. 

Let me offer a warm welcome to all graduates, family members, and other supporters of the Sanford School’s Class of 2026.  When I was asked to serve as your speaker, I was hit by a flood of emotions, including a wave of gratitude for the chance to spend these special moments with all of you on this beautiful campus, in Cameron --this timeless, nearly sacred, building.

Among the many privileges Duke has afforded me, a position on the Sanford School’s Board of Visitors is particularly cherished. It allows me to stay in touch with our amazing University and its stunning campus, to visit my son (Trinity ‘25 and Nicholas School of the Environment ’27) and most importantly to gain insights into what Sanford and its stellar students and faculty have done, are doing, will do to make the world a better place, one policy memo at a time.

I really don’t mean that to sound glib. I sincerely believe, fundamentally, that this is Sanford’s and Public Policy’s animating vision: to make our country and our world a better place, one issue at a time.

Your Public Policy education is a skeleton key that can unlock all kinds of doors and endeavors, from academia to private industry to the government service.  Be proud of your accomplishments and know that your wisdom to study public policy will serve you well.

I think the principles of PRESSURE and MOMENTUM are particularly apt as you begin to make your way in the world.  Perhaps especially so if you heed the call to public service.

First, PRESSURE, which takes many forms.  Each of you surely have felt it in your lives. To perform. To stand out.  To achieve. To represent yourself and your family well. To stack one stone on top of the next as you build a resumé, a foundation, a reputation, a network, maybe the roots of a career. 

That kind of pressure is often external; it’s directed at you.  It is a force that works upon you.

But there is a more productive kind of pressure.  It is the kind that you generate, that you apply to the challenges you face and the problems you undertake to resolve. It is pressure borne of your intellect, curiosity, passion, and drive. 

You chip away at roadblocks.  You educate yourself about hurdles and how to overcome them. You consider things like the suitability, desirability, feasibility, acceptability, and sustainability of solutions so that you can advocate for the most practicable approaches available. 

As you commence to tackle the wicked problems lurking out there, be prepared to apply this positive PRESSURE so that you become an unstoppable force behind good policy.

MOMENTUM is PRESSURE’S first cousin.  While PRESSURE puts things in motion, maintaining MOMENTUM is necessary to see things through.  No matter how good your ideas or how clever your advocacy, you will encounter friction, self-doubt and doubt from others, competition, obfuscation, and all manner of controversy. 

Dig in. Stay in the fight.  Most worthwhile endeavors turn out to be marathons, not sprints. Commit to learning from your mistakes, and to not becoming prisoner to them. 

Persistence matters more than you can possibly know. 

I had to apply to become a military lawyer twice. Four times was the charm to my final Army promotion.  More than a half dozen applications and nearly two decades of labor in two federal agencies preceded my role as a senior executive.  The titles weren’t the point so much as the broader reach and responsibility I sought, believing I could have more positive impact.

What I’ve learned is that the headwinds don’t matter. All that matters is how you tack against them.  So: be consistent, be undeterred, be unflagging, be decent, be open.  Above all, stay in motion, maintain MOMENTUM towards your goals, whether in connection with your policy projects, your career, your family, or your pastimes. 

Untold possibility stretches out before you. You’ve got that skeleton key in your pocket.  You’re prepared to apply PRESSURE and keep MOMENTUM as you drive forward toward positive policy and other outcomes. 

So, Sanford Class of ’26, good luck and Godspeed as you begin your journeys.  I look forward to seeing the amazing destinations you’ll reach along the way, and I hope that our paths cross again some day, some way. Onward and upward, Blue Devils!

Read more about Sanford graduation  or watch the recording of the ceremony.

A Message From Duke Sanford's Associate Director of alumni relations maggie stroud April 2024

Dear Sanford Alumni and Friends, 

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On behalf of the Development and Alumni Relations team, Happy Spring! Next month marks my one-year anniversary as the Associate Director of Alumni Relations here at Sanford and I continue to be filled with gratitude as I reflect on the thoughtfulness of you, our alumni, and the intentionality that fills these hallways and beyond. We are a community of leaders who strive to create positive change and I am thankful to be a part of our collective movement of change. 

Our alumni program is flourishing – we are growing not only in numbers, but in planting seeds of change. Our alumni are creating service opportunities in their communities, coming back to campus to engage with students, networking within their region, and continuing to transform policy. It is inspiring to see your many and varied ideas and priorities blossom into action. I have had the pleasure of collaborating with you through #DogDaysOfSummer, Sanford Serves, regional events, and sharing virtual cups of coffee. It is inspiring to see engagement come to action, while realizing we all define engagement differently. To me, engagement is a commitment to be involved – leaning on your unique gifts and your skills. Coming to the table with an openness to lean in, define your why, and go with purpose. 

What does engagement with Duke Sanford mean to you? What do you hope we change in the next few years that will change Duke’s next 100 years? I look forward to connecting with each of you as we move Sanford forward together. 

Maggie Stroud 

Associate Director of Alumni Relations 

A Message From Duke Sanford BOV Member Chad Sarchio
March 2024

Dear Sanford Alumni & Friends,

What a privilege to offer you tidings from Sanford’s Board of Visitors. We are a group of Duke alumni and friends who treasure our education. While we share common academic roots, our careers have branched out broadly. We are advisors, leaders, analysts, lawyers, entrepreneurs, and more. We work in industry, for non-profits, in government, and for ourselves. We have relatives who graduated from Duke, were the first in our family to attend college, or simply appreciate this amazing institution. We come together every few months and show this love by studying our school’s past, considering anticipated challenges and potential opportunities that students, administrators, and professors may confront, and offering whatever strategic insights or guidance our professional experiences allow. Engaging with Sanford presents an often thrilling, uniformly gratifying way to give back. 

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This proved true in February when I attended the recent Alumni 101 event in D.C. to discuss with recent grads the virtually limitless ways to remain meaningfully engaged with our alma mater remarks ranged widely, covering volunteerism, philanthropy, networking, and socializing around Blue Devils games, and even blazing entirely novel alumni paths. One panelist described the “transformative energy” at the heart of the best alumni work. That really caught my attention. If a chance to find and tap into your own transformative energy doesn’t inspire you to come out and dive into our deep, Duke Blue pool, I’m not sure what could.

When I was on campus in the early ‘90s, my peers’ vast array of talents, perspectives, and interests humbled me. The aspiring physician, the small family business scion, the future military leader, the ambitious master of the universe in training: every one of them thought deeply about our community and country, cared intensely about doing well (enough) while doing good, and expected fully that our university would provide once and future springboards for their journeys.

That has proved true for me. From conducting alumni interviews to revisiting campus to address Army ROTC cadets, to serving the BOV, Duke and Sanford have remained near and dear. I may not always be able to tell my “new dorms” from actual new dorms, or my Central Campus from, well, whatever that means today. But I have always tended to the lines that tether me to Duke. Those ties don’t just bind, they continue to pull me up and forward via folks like Dean Kelley, fellow BOV member Geralyn Ritter, and students/recent grads like Shrey Majmudar. Their work, their character, and their commitment to Sanford scream transformative energy. I’ll keep trying to match theirs.

We’re 100 years on now and growing stronger. But nothing and nobody is promised tomorrow. So, what will you do to help Sanford harness the unbridled promise of Duke’s next century?

Chad Sarchio PPS’92 P’25

Senior Counsel

Federal Law Enforcement Agency

A Message From Professor Deondra Rose
February 2024

Dear Sanford Alumni and Friends, 

I’m honored to send warm February greetings on behalf of the vibrant intellectual community at the Sanford School of Public Policy.  While every year as a faculty member at Sanford is special, this year holds a particular place in my heart because it marks not only Duke University’s centennial year, but also my 10th year as a member of this wonderful community.   

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Over the past decade, I have had the privilege of working with thousands of Duke students as they work to acquire an interdisciplinary set of tools to solve problems and help make the world a better place.  In the classroom, our students have engaged in deep conversations about concepts like policy feedback—the idea that public policies have the capacity to shape politics—that provide valuable tools for understanding the nuances of policymaking and policy outcomes.  They have crafted scores of memos in response to questions posed by North Carolina policymakers and issue advocates, offering valuable insight into a broad array of issues from increasing youth voter turnout in rural communities, to recruiting and retaining excellent K-12 public school teachers, to promoting civility in government.  Rather than waiting until graduation to have an impact on the world, our students actively draw on the research skills and analytical insights that they build in the classroom to have an impact on the world in real-time. 

The Sanford School’s approach to public policy education is unique; and in my opinion, our amazing community of alumni and friends is the special ingredient in Sanford’s secret sauce.  Like so many of my colleagues, my work as a teacher and researcher has benefited from the inspiring alumni who make time to share their expertise, professional journeys, valuable lessons, and big ideas with us.  Alumni like Sanford BOV members J.J. Johnson and Caitlin Durkovich have inspired students by joining us for classroom visits and also inviting us to visit their workplaces to help students imagine where their public policy education can take them.  Parents like Polis Distinguished Fellow Miriam Sapiro have enriched our classroom discussions by bringing special guests to campus to help us delve into contemporary policy issues.  And alumni like Paul Braithwaite and Yelberton Watkins have made powerful contributions to our research in helping scholars like me connect with policy experts and practitioners in Washington.  (I want to give a special shout-out to Paul and Yebbie for their support as I conducted research for my newest book, The Power of Black Excellence: HBCUs and the Fight for American Democracy!)   

It is such a privilege to be a part of the Sanford and Duke community.  As I reflect on the past ten years, I am filled with gratitude for each and every member of our community and excited about what we can achieve together in the years to come.  Go Sanford, and go Duke! 

All my thanks and very best wishes, 

Deondra Rose 

Kevin D. Gorter Associate Professor of Public Policy, Political Science, and History 

2023-24 Duke University Presidential Fellow 

Director, Polis: Center for Politics 

Sanford School of Public Policy, Duke University 

A Message From Josh Bond G'08
January 2024

Dear Sanford Alumni and Friends,  

On behalf of the Development & Alumni Relations team, Happy New Year. Earlier this week, I attended Duke’s Centennial Celebration Kick-off. As I sat in Cameron waiting for the program to begin, I was reminded of my first impressions of Duke, formed during two days of interviews with faculty and staff from across campus in 2000. There was something special about this community of smart, hardworking people committed to moving Duke and the world forward. Duke had me at hello. 

During the Centennial Kick-off, the story of Duke’s past, present and aspirations for the future was shared. The stories of alumni, faculty, students, staff and friends included powerful examples of interdisciplinary collaboration, and knowledge in service to society. These signature strengths of Duke University, which trace their origins to 1972, and Terry Sanford’s vision for applied, interdisciplinary public policy education founded on a new set of ideas. Ideas that continue to resonate and propel Duke and Sanford forward.

Duke’s Centennial is an opportunity to celebrate the people, programs and impact this bold interdisciplinary initiative, known today as the Sanford School of Public Policy, has had on Duke, the nation and the world.

And we are just getting started. Duke’s future will be shaped in part by alumni. Read on to learn about ways you can engage. Be sure to join us on social media. Here’s to Duke at 200!

Josh Bond G'08

Associate Dean for Development & Alumni Relations

A Message From Jessica On, PPS'24 November 2023

Dear Sanford Alumni and Friends,  

With November ushering in new endeavors as the year comes closer to an end, I extend a warm welcome on behalf of the undergraduate public policy students. As a senior immersed in the study of public policy and education, and actively engaged with the Development and Alumni team, I am continuously invigorated by Sanford’s commitment to nurturing democracy and fostering leadership in policy. 

As a first-generation student, it is profoundly heartening to know that a compassionate community of Sanford alumni exists. From engaging with the Sanford Board of Visitors to hearing the remarkable Dudley Flood G‘80 share his experiences desegregating schools in North Carolina, these encounters have left an unforgettable mark on my journey through public policy. This community’s commitment to nurturing and supporting the next generation of leaders underscores the enduring spirit of mentorship that will continue long after I walk across the graduation stage in Cameron Indoor Stadium this May.   

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Reflecting on when I applied to Duke four years ago, I wrote in my essays about how I dreamed of learning from Professor Deondra Rose. When I got to campus, those dreams became an enriching reality.  I learned and worked alongside Professor Rose in her courses and as an undergraduate fellow for Polis, Sanford’s Center for Politics. Our team of fellows worked tirelessly through the 2020 election season to host the Polis Innovation Accelerator, a virtual panel series where we heard from alumni like Susan Gordon T‘80 on leadership and politics. This fellowship underscored the pivotal role that alumni contributions play in fostering student engagement and real-world application.   

My involvement in the Hart Leadership Program (HLP) as a Service Opportunity in Leadership (SOL) fellow was particularly enlightening in my understanding of leadership in the public sphere. Guided by Professor Alexandra Zagbayou and HLP Director Andrew Nurkin T‘03, we delved into the ethics of community engagement, drew from the wisdom of Duke alumni actively involved in community initiatives, and  conducted a community-based project that summer that cultivated into a capstone research portfolio.  

After graduation, I am dedicated to shaping education policy, both in and out of the classroom. Sanford courses from ‘Children, Schools, and Societies’ with Dr. Molly Goldwasser PPS ‘07 to ‘Economics of the Public Sector’ with Dr. Vicki Bogan have equipped me with a profound comprehension of, and motivation to challenge, the systemic social inequities that perpetuate disparities in educational attainment.  

Working within the Development and Alumni Relations office at Sanford, I am consistently inspired by the remarkable journeys and contributions of our distinguished alumni. Witnessing the philanthropic contributions that power fellowships like Polis and SOL, scholarships, and invaluable opportunities for students like me reaffirms the transformative potential of investing in the future of public policy. 

With heartfelt gratitude and renewed inspiration, I look forward to carrying forth the legacy of excellence that defines the Sanford community. 

Warm Regards, 

Jessica On PPS’24  

A Message From Professor David Hoffman October 2023

Dear Sanford Alumni and Friends,

On behalf of the faculty at Sanford, I bring you our Fall Semester greetings as we have turn our energy to teaching, research and making an impact in support of democracy. It is the privilege of my professional life to work with the tremendously talented undergraduate and graduate students at Sanford, both in the classroom and in the Technology Policy Lab that Prof. Ken Rogerson and I founded.  In the lab we are excited to have over twenty students exploring cybersecurity capacity building, health data privacy, platform accountability, digital equity, Internet of Things device labeling, and social media verification and identity mechanisms.  

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In addition to being a faculty member at Duke, I am a Duke alum. As an alum I have seen my connection to Duke grow each year as I gather with other Duke alumni in friendship and to collaborate professionally. Hosting fellow alumni as they come back to campus is a special pleasure, as many have agreed to participate in our research and mentor students. Having alumni participate in our research has reinforced to me how important it is for alumni to share what they have learned with our students and in so doing also gain from the perspective of the next generation of future leaders. 

Also, as a Duke parent the past four years I was able to observe through a different lens the selfless efforts of my colleagues including Ken Rogerson, Dirk Phillipsen, Suzanne Katzenstein and Nick Carnes to mentor and develop my son and his friends. It is difficult to describe the selfless service the faculty provides to inspire and support the students at Duke. Those efforts foster a culture that supports and pushes itself to constantly improve, adapt and to maximize the impact that was the foundation for Terry Sanford’s vision for the school. At Sanford the most valued element of the community is the relationships between its members. I encourage you all to come back and interface with the students and the faculty and be part of that community. I promise that you will have the same humbling and inspiring experience that I have. 

David Hoffman L'93 P'23
Steed Family Professor of the Practice of Public Policy

Duke Sanford School of Public Policy
Associate of the Duke Initiative for Science & Society
Affiliate Faculty Member, Duke-Margolis Center for Health Policy

2023 has been a banner year for Sanford Tech Policy, view Professor Hoffman and others' work by clicking here. 

Summer 2023 Duke Sanford Alumni #DogDaysOfSummer

The sun has set on Dog Days of Summer and there can be only one canine champion, one supreme Duke Sanford Pup. The winner is Gotham and her human Nicole Kyle PPS'13!

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This summer we reached out to Sanford Alumni and invited them to take part in our #DogDaysOfSummer #PublicPAWlicy photo competition. 

We sent out Duke Sanford bandanas across the country and had alumni send us pictures of their furry friends along with a message about what they are doing this summer. We have been sharing pictures across our social media platforms and through our photo gallery. 

Thank you to our alumni who have reached out for #DogDaysOfSummer and participated. To view the full collection of Duke Sanford Pups from this summer, click the link below.