Home > News & Events
Harvey Picker Prize for Public Service
Jakob Lund and Brandon Woods have been awarded SIPA’s 2009 Harvey Picker Prize for Public Service. The Harvey Picker Prize recognizes graduating students who demonstrate exceptional commitment to public service.
Jakob Lund (MIA ’09) founded Play31, an organization that provides footballs and other sporting goods equipment to children in post-conflict zones. Play31’s vision is a world where all children are free to play, as stipulated in Article 31 of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child.
“What the Picker Prize recognizes, in my opinion, is that we really can make a difference in the world – locally or globally – when we decide to turn ideas into action,” said Lund. “By organizing football tournaments and community gatherings, Play31 contributes to the ongoing reconciliation process in Sierra Leone, helping to rebuild relationships dribble by dribble.”
Lund conceived the idea of Play31 while working on community-based reconciliation in Sierra Leone. Lund is a Human Rights concentrator at SIPA, and has worked on human rights issues with the Anne Frank Stichting, U.S. Congress and Amnesty International.
Brandon Woods (MIA ’09) served as a volunteer with The Liberty Partnerships Program at Barnard College, which provides academic and social support services to youth in New York. He spearheaded an “enrichment program” for the youth, organizing his peers at SIPA and Teachers College to work with students throughout the year. Woods is credited with reinvigorating the program by bringing in new volunteers and dynamic speakers.
"Mentoring young people within the Harlem community is a great way to give back,” said Woods. ”By drawing upon the diverse academic and life experiences of SIPA students, we have attempted to broaden the horizons of program participants by exposing them to different pathways, options and career pursuits. Receiving the Harvey Picker Prize is an honor.”
Woods is an International Finance and Policy concentrator at SIPA, and has received a position in the Timothy J. Hauser Program for Presidential Management Fellows, which offers a rotation in the International Trade Administration. Woods is a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, having served in the U.S. Army as a commissioned officer, and was previously awarded the Army Commendation Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal and Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.
The Picker Prize honors Harvey Picker, former Dean of Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs (1972 – 1983). During Dean Picker’s tenure, the School nearly tripled in size following his introduction of the Master in Public Administration (MPA) program. Nominations for the Harvey Picker Prize are submitted by faculty, staff and students. A committee of faculty and staff select the winners.