The Five College Public Policy Initiative is designed to enhance collaboration among Five College faculty and students interested in curricula, research and outreach related to public policy.

Currently, more than 300 classes at Amherst, Hampshire, Mount Holyoke and Smith colleges, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst include public policy as an important focus in one or more units of the course. In addition, many campus-based projects, centers and internships engage our learning communities with the policy world.

The Five College Public Policy Initiative supports our institutions’ collective commitment to employing, informing and disseminating important public policy perspectives, and to raising the visibility of that commitment within and beyond the Five College area.

Two projects currently comprise the Five College Public Policy Initiative:

Social Justice Practitioner-in-Residence Program
The Social Justice Practitioner-in-Residence program gives Five College students and faculty unique opportunities to engage with and learn from individuals who have hands-on policymaking experience. By offering occasions to interact with those who have chosen lives of service, the residency program will help students imagine careers of their own that might advance the common good. Read more about the selected residents. 

We are now accepting proposals for the program's final residency, in the fall of 2013. All members of the Five College community—faculty, students and staff—are eligible to submit a proposal, due Thursday, May 31, 2012. Additional information about the program and application materials are available through the links below.

Five College Social Justice Practitioner-in-Residence Call for Proposals

Five College Social Justice Practitioner-in-Residence Application Form (due Thursday, May 31, 2012)

Five College Policy Practitioner Residency Program (original program proposal)


Accelerated Master of Public Policy Degree Program
The Master of Public Policy (MPP) program offers current Five College undergraduates the opportunity to earn a professional graduate degree from UMass Amherst just one year after completing their bachelor’s. The MPP curriculum integrates theoretical learning with multiple opportunities for practical applications.