Millennial Must-Reads are student-contributed posts by members of the "Millennial" generation - America's 18-29 year-olds - on current events and politics and public service. Viewpoints expressed are exclusively attributed to undergraduate authors and not endorsed by Harvard's Institute of Politics.
Authored by Jacob Morello '15.
I had the privilege of attending the 2014 New Frontier Awards on Wednesday at the JFK Presidential Library in South Boston, and left inspired and invigorated. Each year, the JFK Library and the Institute of Politics partner to honor two young public servants under the age of 40—one elected, and one involved in community service and advocacy work. This year’s winners were Svante Myrick, Mayor of Ithaca, NY and Nina Dudnik, Founder and CEO of Seedling Labs. Both have made tremendous contributions to the world, and their stories were empowering for myself and the other undergraduates present at the reception and dinner.
Mayor Myrick, who assumed office in 2011 at the age of 24, has led his city to a remarkable economic recovery following record high unemployment during the Great Recession. In his three short years, Ithaca has rebounded to enjoy the lowest unemployment rate in the state of New York, with a rebuilt and modernized commons to make it a locus for entrepreneurship and business. His unlikely path to Cornell University, the Ithaca City Council, and finally the Mayor’s office is a testament to the good that government can do, and his words encouraged me to aspire to be a part of that.
“We stand today on the edge of a New Frontier…. I believe the times demand new invention, innovation, imagination, decision. I am asking each of you to be pioneers on that New Frontier.” – President John F. Kennedy
The other recipient of the award, Nina Dudlik, founded Seeding Labs to provide scientists in the developing world with the tools and resources to enable valuable research. In her speech, she spoke of the incredible technology and research conducted right here in Boston, and her vision of a world in which that kind of research is possible in every country around the world. It’s an exciting notion that together, with efforts across the world, we can solve the most pressing scientific problems we face – of disease, poverty and malnourishment.
It is during ceremonies like this, when we hear from those who are truly answering President Kennedy’s call to public service, that I am most inspired to make a difference. In the words of President Kennedy, we seek solutions not because they are easy, but because they are hard. Let us all be pioneers on that New Frontier every day.
Jacob Morello is a junior in Dunster House concentrating in Economics with a secondary in Government. Originally from Tampa, FL, he became involved with the IOP his freshman fall as a member of John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum committee, and has been a liaison for the Fellows and Study Groups program, a member of the Special Events committee, a staff writer for the Harvard Political Review, and a tutor through the Citizenship Tutoring program. Outside of the IOP, he is the Vice-President of Harvard Model Congress San Francisco as well as a committee chairman for the Harvard Model Congress Boston and Madrid conferences. He is also a member of the Harvard Catholic Student Association, and enjoys composing for string orchestra. Prior to serving as Vice-President of the IOP, he was the chair of the JFK Jr. Forum committee.