On 7 September, we celebrated the success of the latest graduates of the Executive Master of Public Administration (EMPA) programme.
The tenth graduating cohort of the EMPA programme contained twenty six students, over half of whom came from outside of Germany to study. Students came from a variety of organisations including the United Nations, the European Forum, the World Trade Organisation, and several Federal and Foreign Ministries.
Hertie School President Henrik Enderlein opened by inviting students to remain a part of the Hertie School community and to stay in touch. "The Hertie School strives to be a radically forward looking place,” he said.
The commencement speaker was Julie Smith, Weizsäcker Fellow at the Bosch Academy in Berlin and former Deputy National Security Advisor to the Vice President of the United States (2012-13). Smith shared her insights on what it is to be a leader. "Ground yourselves in truth," she advised. "Define your values and prepare to defend them, be a leader in civility, invest in your community, don‘t fall into the trap of defending the status quo."
Student speaker Adrian Sonder was cheered for his humorous and heartfelt remarks about his fellow graduates and their past two years at Hertie School.
In her remarks, Andrea Römmele, director of the EMPA Proramme and Professor for Communication in Politics and Civil Society, applauded the way in which graduates had "made uncertainty their friend".
Photos © Hertie School / Peter Himsel