The program annually placed several hundred persons with advanced degrees—mostly in public administration and related areas—into fellowship type positions in federal agencies. Image: melissamn/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffAlumni of the Presidential Management Fellows program are urging Congress to pass legislation (S-768) to revive that program, saying it had proved to be “a highly successful tool for recruiting our nation’s most talented individuals into the next generation of government leaders.”
“The federal government is in dire need of young talent for which the PMF Program can continue to serve as a pathway to bring new ideas, approaches, and technologies to the federal workforce. Fellows have long been a source of fresh thinking within government and should remain a central tool in modernizing and improving government operations,” says a letter to Congress from the Presidential Management Alumni Association.
The program annually placed several hundred persons with advanced degrees—mostly in public administration and related areas—into fellowship type positions in federal agencies, with the opportunity to convert to mid-management positions in the competitive service status after a year of satisfactory performance. Nearly nine-tenths of fellows remained in the government, the group said.
President Trump earlier this year canceled the program as “unnecessary.”
The order did not affect the other two prongs of the Pathways Program, the Internship program and the Recent Graduates program, although he meanwhile abolished Federal Executive Boards, which had been the primary means of coordinating among agencies in a geographic area on issues such as emergency response, and later closed the Federal Executive Institute, the flagship leadership development program for those in the SES and those in the upper GS levels.
Although the program dated to the Carter administration, it never was put into law. The pending bill would do so and make various technical changes.
“By making the PMF Program a permanent fixture of federal recruitment, Congress would ensure that future generations of leaders are trained to navigate complex policy challenges, work collaboratively, and serve with integrity and commitment to the security and prosperity of the American people,” the letter says.
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