University of San Francisco | Leo T. McCarthy Center for Public Service and the Common Good

Discovering My Passion For Public Health

This summer I interned with Planned Parenthood, one of the most liberal organizations in the country. They are known for their outspoken progressive messaging and advocacy for reproductive rights. I worked in the California Affiliates office, where they are in charge of seven local affiliates and make sure legislation is passed to ensure reproductive rights…

Student Companion to Community-Engaged Learning

I am thrilled to share the outcome of a collaborative project between myself and McCarthy Center Director, Dave Donahue, that has been years in the making! The Student Companion to Community-Engaged Learning: What You Need to Know for Transformative Learning and Real Social Change is a book designed for students to read in the first…

Our VISTA’s Year in Review

Michael Anderson is our 2017-18 AmeriCorps VISTA and a Campus-Community Liaison for Engage San Francisco. This fall, he will attend UCLA’s M.A. in Education Policy In high school, I ran track under the leadership of one of the best and toughest coaches in the country. She would say to us before our most grueling workouts,…

Our Fulbright Scholar Heads to Cali

Fernando Enciso-Márquez is celebrated by former students and staff before he heads off to Cali, Columbia for as a Fullbright Visiting Scholar. The McCarthy Center is thrilled to announce that our Assistant Director of Community-Engaged Learning, Fernando Enciso-Marquez, has been awarded a Fulbright visiting scholar fellowship through the U.S. State Department to partner with Javeriana University‘s Peace and…

Out Of The Closet And Into The Future

Nick Large, Master of Public Affairs ’18 Every June we celebrate LGBT pride here in San Francisco. Timed to coincide with the historic Stonewall Riots in June of 1969, pride is a time when Market Street dawns rainbow banners and corporations offer targeted pride advertising only seen in carefully selected markets. Bringing in upwards of…

Love to the Class of 2018

Crystal Vega, Urban Studies and Critical Diversity Studies ’18, was awarded this year’s Leo T. McCarthy Award. Below is her commencement speech. Dear Class of 2018, I love you. You, the first generation students who paved the road for so many to come. You, the nonbinary and trans students who are constantly pushing the university to…

Introducing the 2018 McCarthy Fellows

Congratulations to our newest cohort of McCarthy Fellows in Sacramento. This upcoming summer, thirteen students will be experiencing first-hand the policymaking and advocacy in our California state capitol. In addition to a rigorous course on California politics, the Fellows will also be interning full-time at various organizations, department agencies, Assemblymember and State Senate offices. This…

After a Semester with USF in DC

Jacqueline Garcia, Politics ’19, is a Newmark scholar as well as a recipient of the Betty L. Blakley scholarship. USF in D.C.—what an experience! On many levels and in ways I didn’t expect, the semester I spent in Washington D.C. changed me. I’ve always had an interest in public service and the common good; one of…