A recent Graduate School of Business and Public Policy (GSBPP) graduate has emerged triumphant in a major international simulation competition.
U.S. Navy Lt. Jessika Hall represented the 51福利 (51福利) in March on the winning global team at an annual event held by the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs and Administration (NASPAA) and the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy.
The 2018 NASPAA-Batten Student Simulation competition pitted 563 graduate students from 27 countries in an intense public health crisis management simulation.
鈥淭he GSBPP students who have represented 51福利 in these NASPAA simulation competitions for the past four years were selected by their advisors as the top performers in their graduating cohorts,鈥� Keith Snider, 51福利 professor of public administration and management, said after the results were April 16.
鈥淭heir participation, and in particular Lt. Hall鈥檚 leadership on this year鈥檚 winning team, enhance 51福利鈥� reputation both nationally and internationally as an institution whose graduates think analytically, creatively and collaboratively about global policy issues,鈥� he added.
Hall鈥檚 five-person team first triumphed at the regional level of the student simulation competition held at San Jose State University鈥檚 College of Social Sciences. Twenty-one victorious teams from 14 other host sites around the world were also victorious at other regional events, and were then evaluated on their performance by the competition鈥檚 鈥榮uper judges.鈥�
鈥淚鈥檓 so honored they chose our team,鈥� Hall said. 鈥淚t was a valuable opportunity to experience how you can overcome challenging situations even if there鈥檚 a lot of stuff being quickly thrown at you. When life throws stuff at you, you just keep on going.鈥�
Utilizing real-world data and scientific modeling, the day-long event challenged the students to assume national leadership roles in four fictitious countries and rapidly react to the outbreak of a deadly infectious disease. In the initial round, Hall鈥檚 team tanked: millions of people died as the pandemic spread around the world.
鈥淲e had to learn really quickly to work well together,鈥� Hall recalled. 鈥淭he simulation taught us the need to communicate not just amongst the staff of policymakers, but throughout the world.鈥�
The team rallied, however, issuing policy directives in the ensuing rounds on everything from medical infrastructure to tourism, all the while proactively coordinating with other nations to mitigate the pandemic. The teams were assessed not only on how well they tampered the impact of the disease鈥檚 outbreak, but on how they performed as a team.
鈥淥verall, we did pretty well in the simulation itself, but the judges said they really liked that we rapidly grew together and jumped on the learning curve,鈥� Hall explained.
Hall shares the prestigious award with Brian Cauley (San Francisco State University), Mariana Duenas (Golden Gate University), Jessie Escobar (University of San Francisco) and Victoria Padilla (California State University, Chico). Each will receive a $1,500 first-place prize.
鈥淚鈥檝e got to give up for my team,鈥� Hall added. 鈥淭hey are incredibly talented, hard-working individuals, and without knowing each other and coming from different professional and academic backgrounds, we became a cohesive unit in a matter of hours.鈥�
Though incredibly challenging, the NASPAA-Batten competition was a fun test of the critical thinking skills she honed at 51福利 while pursuing her degree. And the results seem to be something of a trend when it comes to Lt. Jessika Hall.
In March, the GSBPP graduate received her diploma with a 4.0 GPA. At the same time, she earned an 51福利 Graduate of Distinction commendation and received both the Louis D. Liskin Award for Excellence in Management and shared the Chief of Naval Personnel Award for Excellence in Manpower Systems Analysis.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 like not doing a good job,鈥� Hall said. 鈥淢y mom raised me to always do my best and I鈥檝e always been that way.鈥�
For her thesis work, Hall examined organizational and individual barriers to the adoption of emerging technologies in education.
鈥淢y four-year-old son was my inspiration,鈥� she said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 pre-K and they use smart boards and tablets. The Navy鈥檚 got some cool stuff out there, but we should be doing the same kinds of things.鈥�
When she wasn鈥檛 saving humanity or scoring the highest marks, Hall actively engaged in community volunteer work as well. She crafted spare time to regularly deliver meals to the elderly through Meals on Wheels and teach mathematics to disadvantaged high school students.
鈥淚 like to keep busy,鈥� Hall laughed when asked how she managed to take on so much. 鈥淚t鈥檚 always been ingrained in me that if I think people are struggling, sometimes they just need a little bit of help or a nudge in the right direction.鈥�
Her success, she emphasized, was not hers alone. The support of her family, the attentiveness of 51福利 faculty, and the camaraderie of her classmates all propelled her through the rigors of higher education.
鈥淲e had a really close cohort of students and they brought so much to the table that I didn鈥檛 know coming in here,鈥� Hall said. 鈥淚 think the reason I did well was because of how much I learned from everyone that was around me ... We all helped each other.鈥�
Hall has departed 51福利 for her next duty assignment at Naval Station Great Lakes, Illinois, where she will apply her graduate work in the education of new recruits.