They’re more experienced, wiser and happy with how things turned out since graduation.

We asked several Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions Outstanding Graduates from the last decade to share with the current generation of students what made them successful — both during their time at ASU and afterward.  

Some of the graduates emphasized networking and getting...

Felicia Ganther’s higher education career spans more than a quarter century and includes a PhD degree from Arizona State University. On July 1, that career took a major step forward as Ganther became a college president.

Ganther built strong local roots and gained many memorable experiences before taking over as head of Bucks County Community College, which enrolls 7,100 students...

Jose Pelaez was in the Middle East as a member of the U.S. Air Force Reserve when he realized he wanted to be more involved in emergency management and homeland security planning.

Pelaez had been serving as a security forces noncommissioned officer in the reserve. His bachelor’s degree is in criminal justice with experience as a civilian police sergeant.

“I...

Part-time jobs, which students often take while finishing school, aren’t usually known for their location at the Arizona State Capitol. Hannah Roehr won’t go full time in her position until she graduates from Arizona State University in December, but she’s already the public information officer, known as a PIO, for one of the state’s top elected officials.

Roehr is a ...

The magnitude of calls for social justice, change and equality over recent years have led organizations to look deeper into their practices and adjust their missions to be inclusive of all people. However, DL White, an alumnus of Public Allies Arizona at the ASU Lodestar Center, was ahead of the game. Even before completing the Public Allies program, White had...

Todd Lemay remembers longing for snowless days. The weather constricted the Maine native in ways others couldn’t comprehend. That wasn’t all; steps robbed him of his freedom. Beaches did the same.

“Every house, every apartment, even restaurants — they all have steps in Maine,” he said.

Lemay was born with osteogenesis imperfecta, a brittle bone disease that has led him...