In an effort to recruit young Americans with graduate-level skills into the federal government, Rep. David Price (D-NC) has proposed the Roosevelt Scholars Act, which will give scholarships of up to $60,000 a year to graduate students in exchange for 1 year of internship and, after graduation, 3 to 5 years of public service with the federal government. Similar to the ROTC program for the army, the Roosevelt Scholars Act, named after Theodore Roosevelt, seeks to “encourage outstanding graduate students in mission-critical fields to pursue a career in the Federal Government” and satisfy the government’s need for young people skilled in areas such as engineering, information technology, public health, and foreign languages. Similar bills have already been shot down twice; but with the average age of the federal government worker getting higher and people retiring, supporters believe this is a cost-effective way to fill in the gaps for young expertise, especially in cybersecurity. According to the Partnership for Public Service, 58% of civil service employees are older than 45, whereas in the private sector, the figure is only 41%.

 

The current bill only provides for scholarships to graduate students.

-Jamie Mei Cheng

 

Lawmakers Renew Push for Public Service Scholarships (by Alex. M. Parker, Government Executive)

H.R.3510 (Library of Congress)

The Aging – and Retiring – Federal Workforce (by Ralph Smith, FedSmith)