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Alumni and Friends: La Follette Notes Fall 2004
Board of Visitors hears from alum who served on 9/11 Commission staff
Dan Leopold says he was surprised the day a La Follette School policy analysis class turned into a major stepping stone in his career.
The Ohio native, who graduated with a master's degree in international public policy in 2003, told the La Follette School Board of Visitors at its October meeting in Washington, D.C., that his work with real clients helped further his career in federal service, including a stint with the 9/11 Commission on terrorist attacks.
Leopold says a project for a class in international policy analysis with Associate Director Melanie Manion helped him get work in Washington, D.C. The project looked at the impact of a municipal amalgamation in Montreal and was commissioned by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. Leopold credits his classmates and close oversight by Manion for the tight writing and strategic findings that made the project successful.
Leopold said he almost didn't include the project on a résumé when he went for an interview with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for an intelligence analyst position about six months ago.
The interviewers showed an immediate interest in the project, Leopold says. Given that cue, he explained that the OECD project benefited him because he worked for a real client under strict time constraints; he thought critically about important public policy issues through the application of the analysis skills that he learned in his courses; and he improved his abilities to work in a group environment and to take advantage of each member's strengths.
Leopold says his time with the 9/11 Commission prepared him for his current job as an intelligence analyst with Homeland Security, where he is examining regional trends and writing threat assessments.
He thanked the Board of Visitors, specifically Tom Loftus, for helping him secure the 9/11 Commission position, which was exhausting but rewarding.
The job was wide-reaching with a focus on hearing preparation. One of the toughest aspects was deciding how to limit what the commission would study, Leopold says. He conducted research, wrote and edited in conjunction with the commission's report, staff statements, and monographs.
Prior to serving with the 9/11 Commission and Homeland Security, Leopold interned at the State Department's Bureau of European and Regional Affairs, the Foreign Service Institute, and the Defense Department's Office of Public Affairs.
Leopold closed his presentation by thanking the board members for their assistance in helping him launch his career. He encouraged the board to continue to strengthen its rapport with La Follette School students. “This relationship will further solidify La Follette's reputation as one of the premier public policy schools in the nation.”
Index to La Follette Notes fall 2004