Summar Corley, Class of 2015

Q: What was the path you took to get to where you are now?

 A: I started out pursuing a career in clinical social work. I studied social work in undergrad at the University of Georgia and worked in a program supporting grandparents who were raising their grandchildren in the rural counties surrounding Athens, GA, and got my first experiences in research looking at barriers to graduation for high schoolers in the area. I then moved to North Carolina where I received my MSW from the School of Social Work at UNC Chapel Hill. While at the School of Social Work, I worked as a graduate research assistant on the early stages of a study looking at substance use trajectories among biracial adolescents and adults. I supervised research assistants, helped lead area trainings, and contributed to a successful NIH grant application. I also served as a clinical social work intern on an assertive community treatment team in Chapel Hill. In this role I worked on a multidisciplinary team to provide in-home treatment and support groups to promote independent living in the community for persons with serious and persistent mental illness. 

I left that experience with great respect for folks in direct practice social work, but pretty quickly realized that systems level change, program evaluation, and research best fit my skillset. I knew I still had a knowledge gap, as I wanted to continue to hone my research and management skills and better understand good government, That led me to pursue my MPA at UNC. Throughout the program, I worked for UNC MPA Alum Kristin Siebenaler who (at that time) was Deputy Director of the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program’s National Program Office. She had experience in the federal government and was a big part of helping me see that as a career option. (I even stayed with her sister when I interviewed in DC.) Seeing and writing about the about the research done by the clinical scholars also helped drive my interest in health policy. I also continued to work on my research and communication skills throughout the MPA program, both through coursework, my professional work experience, and some short term work with School of Government professors. 

I had never heard of the US Government Accountability Office (GAO), but luckily learned about it from Maureen Berner. I was able to pursue a position on GAO’s health care team right after I graduated, which was a great fit for my social work background, drive for public service, interest in research, and desire to make government work better and more efficiently for the people it serves. I have spent the past 9 years developing objective, nonpartisan, fact-based reports and congressional testimonies on a range of health care related topics. I also recently completed a two year detail supporting the head of the health care team, including managing our reporting to Congress about our spending on audits related to COVID-19, developing presentations about our pandemic work for auditors from other countries, and revamping our internal awards process. 

Q: Have you pursued/attained any other degrees since your MPA?

A: No. As noted above, I attained my MSW prior to applying to the MPA program. The way we do our work at GAO means I get to deep dive into a different topic for a year or two at a time. It continually meets my passion for learning and keeps me from going back to school. 

Q: Is the field you are working in now relevant to your MPA degree?

A: Definitely. I think the UNC MPA is well known for how It can prepare you for work in local government, but it applies to the federal government as well. My agency is full of public servants conducting program evaluations to make government better, which pull directly from the skillset that an MPA helps students develop. 

Q: How did the MPA program specifically prepare you for future work experiences or inform what you do now?

A: I get to work as a generalist and lead evaluations on a variety of health care related federal programs and policies, ranging from how mental health parity laws have been enforced to how the VA ensures that its medical centers appropriately review a doctor’s care if quality or safety concerns arise. The MPA program prepared me for this role in a variety of ways, largely by providing foundational or fundamental knowledge of government budgeting, organizational leadership, and thinking more systematically about what makes good government and the importance of public service values. Understanding research methods and developing a full research project from design to report during the program helped me better understand research and project management than past positions I had, where I was only able to assist on smaller segments of a research project. The cohort model and the team-based projects really helped prepare me for the type of work I do where everything is team based and relationship building and trust are incredibly important for getting the information we need from the agencies we’re auditing. The ample opportunities to hone both written and oral communication skills were also incredibly important in helping prepare me to speak to or write for a variety of audiences. 

Q: Have you been able to fulfill goals formulated while in the MPA program? If so, how?

A: I think I am still working on it! I had lofty goals of improving health policy and programs for the folks with mental illness that I used to work with and just generally making government programs work better. I got really lucky in finding a job and an agency that aligned with my goals and my values. I’m proud of the work I’ve done so far and some of the program and policy changes that have been made as a result, but there is still a long way to go.