Hello everyone, my name is Marcus. I am from Brazil, where I graduated in mechanical engineering. Before applying for the MPA, I worked for four years designing and evaluating Public-Private Partnership (PPP) projects in the state government of Parana, in the south of Brazil.

This Lent Term 2019 I was very happy to have the opportunity to apply for the School of Public Policy Student Association(APPS) and even happier upon getting elected. In my undergraduate, I had the opportunity to run a similar association, the student representative body, which was a rewarding experience. Despite being in an international environment and in much a more challenging role, the roles have much in common, with a strong focus on engaging students and communities to interact with each other. APPS power to influence our environment and the team from the last year inspired me to continue their legacy or try to do even better.

Our first goal is to facilitate integration among all SPP students, alumni, office, and LSE communities. We will be setting up several different events, from casual parties at local pubs in London to careers events giving a hand for our future jobs, not forgetting traditional events and celebrations such as the SPP Gala and the public policy trip. Our second goal is to ultimately ensure that every student has a voice and any needs and ideas are voiced and heard.

I’d also like to introduce the APPS team for 2019-20. There are six positions in APPS. Ghalia is the Vice-Chair. She assists all members of the team, takes notes of our meetings, organizes the welcome week and the buddy system for incoming students. She also has the power to book rooms at LSE. Matt controls the budget: how much and what; he is the Treasurer. Anna and Narae are in charge of all social events and activities, they occupy the Social Chair roles. They are currently taking care of the preparations for the gala party. Yet, they will also organize the knowing your local, insights from your local, any seasonal celebration and the next public policy trip. Hassan is the Alumni and Careers coordinator. He is responsible for creating opportunities and strategies for students to interact with the SPP Alumni. He might also organize workshops on developing professional skills. Joy and Alexandra oversee the communications and community engagement to making sure everyone is aware of what is going on. They also set up events to promote social responsibility.

Finally, as the chair, I am responsible to ensure APPS Team has the support and resources necessary to plan and coordinate all of its exciting initiatives. Moreover, I aim to fill the gap between SPP students and the APPS team, the SPP office, and LSESU.

I look forward to working with the SPP degrees and the School of Public Policy over 2019-20 to ensure the SPP community remains socially rewarding and professionally engaging into the future.