Student of the Month
Year 2012
January - Alexandra McKinney
Alexandra (Ali) McKinney is a senior majoring in Public Policy and planning to concentrate in Law and the Legal System. Public Policy courses like Public Policy 106: Economics of Legal Rules and Institutions and Public Policy 104: Economic Policy Analysis introduced Ali to the application of economic concepts to legal and policy issues, topics she hopes to incorporate into her future legal career. One of the highlights of Ali’s undergraduate experience was participating in the Stanford in Washington Program during her junior fall quarter. In Washington, she interned with the Federal Communication Commission’s Office of Strategic Planning and Policy Analysis, where she worked mainly on the FCC’s Future of Media report and a merger analysis. Ali also attended the Stanford in Paris Program, and currently serves as a student advisor for the program. On campus, she has been active on the ASSU’s Public Service Team and the Stanford Pre-Law Society. During her summers, Ali worked as a Program and Tournament Coordinator for the United States Tennis Association’s New Hampshire youth program and has served as founder, president, and instructor for a high school guidance department program helping struggling high school students learn skills for academic success. Next year, Ali will be attending law school after having been accepted to her top choice law schools, Harvard, Yale, and Stanford. She hopes to pursue legal careers relating to business and economics.
February - Michael Kent
Michael is a senior simultaneously pursuing B.A. and M.P.P. degrees. His undergraduate concentration is in National Security and Counter Terrorism and his graduate studies focus on broader Science and Technology Policy. He has conducted research with a number of groups, including the Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC), where he analyzed the change in lethality rates in the US and USSR nuclear arsenal over the past 60 years, and with the Hewlett Foundation, where he researched the decision-making that led to the BP oil spill. While attending Stanford in Washington, Michael interned with Booz Allen Hamilton, where he worked with large government clients - most notably the Cost Analysis Division of NASA. Last summer, Michael researched out-of-pocket medical spending and the effect of informing the elderly of retirement savings at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR). Today, in addition to his studies, Michael serves as a research associate to the Omidyar Network, a philanthropic impact investment group located in Redwood City. On campus, Michael is a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity, on the panel of judicial affairs and the organizational conduct board, and a member of the Stanford Varsity Wrestling team. After earning his professional degree in 2013, Michael plans to enter the public sector as a consultant or technology policy analyst.
March - Eric Knudson
Eric is a Public Policy senior minoring in Economics and writing an honors thesis through the Ethics in Society Program on the moral implications of financial aid for international students. Through a concentration in political theory, the Public Policy program has allowed him to bridge his interests in political philosophy and economics. He spent this past summer working at the Reserve Bank of India in Mumbai on an econometric research project testing the impact of speculative trading by commodity index funds on food price volatility. He also served as a Stanford-in-Government fellow at the US Government Accountability Office, where he evaluated the validity of efficiency measures being used by public sector agencies. Eric worked on Capitol Hill for Rep. John D. Dingell and founded his own small business, Serve It Up Tennis. After studying abroad at the Academy of the National Economy in Moscow and completing a tutorial in political philosophy in Oxford, he's excited to continue his involvement on campus as a writing tutor for the Structured Liberal Education program, Co-President of the Pre-Law Society, and a member of the Sigma Nu fraternity. In the future, he hopes to work in the valley for a law or venture capital firm. Eric loves to hike, play piano, and cook.
April - Jane LePham
Jane is a senior majoring in Public Policy with a concentration in Finance and Policy Analysis. A Sophomore College seminar on Wall Street and the 2008 financial crisis first sparked her curiosity in financial policy, and she has since pursued this interest at Stanford and across the country. As a student in the Stanford in Washington program last spring, Jane interned at the Federal Reserve Board and spent her summer at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Her work on the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act for both agencies inspired her honors thesis research, which examines changes in CEO pay practices at American banks before and after the 2008 crisis. On campus, she has served as a research assistant in the Graduate School of Business, managing editor for The Stanford Daily newspaper, and editorial director of The Daily's board of directors. This summer, Jane will join the public finance team at Barclays Capital before returning to Stanford in the fall to begin her master's degree in Public Policy. A former competitive figure skater, she hopes to balance a future career in finance by teaching the sport in her free time.
May - Laura Yu
Laura is a senior majoring in Public Policy, with a concentration in Growth and Development Patterns, and a minor in Modern Languages. Spending two quarters abroad, at Stanford in Beijing and Stanford in Washington, both sparked and helped develop her passion for international development and Asian affairs. She has since pursued that interest by interning for the ONE Campaign--a nonprofit dedicated to fighting extreme poverty--the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), and the Office for Chinese and Mongolian Affairs at the State Department, where she worked on the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue. On campus, Laura has been actively involved with student government, conducted international education research at the Freeman Spogli Institute, and served as a Stanford Nonprofits Board Fellow and Haas Public Service Leadership Fellow. She is currently the President of the Forum for American-Chinese Exchange at Stanford (FACES). Upon finishing her graduate degree in Public Policy next year, Laura hopes to find her way back to China, at least in the short term. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, puttering around the kitchen, and chatting with underclassmen as a Public Policy peer advisor.