Policy in Practice: Alumni share lessons from the field

This week’s Batten Hour debuted the first of several signature monthly career programs, Policy in Practice, featuring graduates who’ve taken their Batten training and put it to work in the world. While future programs will have focus more on substantive policy topics, the kick-off featured four alumni from the first to more recent cohorts, giving students a firsthand glimpse into what their own career trajectories might hold.

The alumni reflected on their varied experiences and offered candid advice to current students who are facing a tougher-than-usual job market. The breadth of their careers highlights how Batten graduates apply their training across a wide range of public service fields: national security, economic development, diplomacy, and leadership development.

Brenan Richards Kane (MPP ’09)

After more than 16 years in federal service, Brenan Richards Kane has learned that expertise alone isn’t enough. “Being the smartest person isn’t always the most important,” she said. “It’s being willing to learn.”

Now director of China policy at the U.S. Department of Defense, Kane has also served at the Pentagon, the National Security Council, the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, and the White House.

Her reflections emphasized humility, persistence, and commitment to service. Kane encouraged students to approach policy with adaptability and resilience, while never losing sight of the core personal values that brought them into public service.

Charlotte Teeling (MPP ’18)

Charlotte Teeling’s career has spanned international development, public service abroad, and now state-level economic policy. After serving in the Peace Corps in Georgia and working on international development projects, she experienced a reduction in force earlier this year, terminating her role with USAID — a setback that could have derailed her trajectory.

Instead, Teeling used it as an opportunity to pivot, building new skills and stepping into a role as business manager for cybersecurity and software at the Virginia Economic Development Partnership. The shift, she says, has been both challenging and rewarding.

“There are a lot of milestones of success that you have to get to that metric,” she explained, referencing the statistics of capital investment and jobs created. At the same time, she takes pride in her ability to adapt across sectors. “The opportunities for leadership and success will come with consensus building and relationship building,” she said, underscoring that flexibility and collaboration define a career in public service.

Saajid Hasan (MPP ’20)

Now a desk officer at the U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration, Saajid Hasan helps shape the frameworks and standards that allow U.S. companies to compete globally. His work spans technical areas like artificial intelligence, energy, and cybersecurity, requiring both policy insight and technical fluency. “Shaping the framework and standards [helps] U.S. companies continue to win abroad,” he explained.

Hasan told students that careers often unfold unpredictably. “A lot of pivotal moments in one’s career can just happen by luck,” he said, recalling how an impromptu hallway conversation led to an opportunity that advanced his path.

His advice was to stay open to unexpected chances, while also building the skills to recognize and seize those opportunities. For Hasan, Batten’s mix of analysis, leadership, and adaptability prepared him to thrive in a field where technical detail meets international diplomacy.

Rodney Rhodes, Jr. (BA ’23)

For Rodney Rhodes, Jr., the leadership lessons from Batten are what carry forward most clearly into his work. After serving with AmeriCorps, Rhodes joined the nonprofit, nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service, where he helps run the AI Government Leadership Program.

“I would encourage you all to really own and take seriously the leadership curriculum and opportunities at this school,” he told the students. Rhodes stressed that person-to-person relationships remain at the core of effective public service, even as new technologies reshape the field.

At the same time, he pointed to the importance of baseline proficiency in emerging tools like artificial intelligence. His perspective reflects the dual challenge facing the next generation of public leaders — staying rooted in the human side of service while also developing fluency in the technologies shaping governance today.

Shared takeaways

Across different fields and career stages, the four alumni echoed similar themes valuing adaptability, the importance of relationships, and the role of chance in shaping opportunities. For Batten students, their advice included both practical guidance and a reminder that policy in practice is never done alone, but through collaboration, curiosity, and a commitment to serving the public.

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