The public affairs mission defines a primary way in which an education at Missouri State University is different from that of other universities.
Who We Are
The Public Affairs Support department at Missouri State University is committed to embodying and promoting the university’s public affairs mission. Our team is led by Mary Ann Wood, Director, and Stacey Trewatha-Bach, Assistant Director. Together, we strive to make the public affairs mission an integral part of the campus culture and the Springfield community.
What We Do
Our department is dedicated to: 
- Hosting the annual Public Affairs Conference, along with other public affairs events and activities.
- Overseeing prestigious awards such as the Excellence in Community Engagement Awards and the Board of Governors Excellence in Public Affairs Awards.
- Managing civic engagement initiatives, including voter education and registration activities.
We Want You To Know
We love and value the university’s public affairs mission and strive to instill an understanding and appreciation for the mission across campus and in our local community.
Our Mission
At Public Affairs Support, we deeply value Missouri State University’s public affairs mission. Our goal is to instill an understanding and appreciation for this mission across the campus and in the local community. We believe that fostering a shared sense of purpose strengthens our collective efforts and aligns our community toward common goals.
Championing Student Success
we believe one component of student success comes from students feeling like they are a part of a larger community with a common goal. By helping people understand the public affairs mission, we hope that they feel engaged in the campus community and a part of this thing we call “Missouri State University” by sharing a common mission with fellow students.
Recent Achievements
We are proud to highlight some of our recent milestones:
- Successfully hosting the 21st Public Affairs Conference, breaking attendance records yet again.
- Recognized by the American Democracy Project for raising student voting rates in 2020 and 2022. Notably, our efforts with Paws to the Polls earned the Silver Seal Award in 2020, reflecting a jump in student voter participation from 50.4% to 62.6%. We are eager to see if we achieve the Gold Seal level after the 2024 Presidential Elections.
Goals for the Upcoming Year
Continue to seek out new opportunities to share and exemplify the public affairs missions within our campus community.
Get Involved
Join us! We are always seeking students to help with our events and social media initiatives. This is a great way to gain experience and contribute to a meaningful cause.
Stay Connected
We post all of our events on the master calendar and also on our website. We have a blog that we manage where we promote our events and activities as well. All of our events and activities are posted on the various electronic monitors around campus, so they should be able to see them there as well.