Public service academy effort gains bipartisan support

Four lawmakers have agreed to introduce bills in both chambers of Congress establishing a civilian public service academy in the mold of West Point.

Just Thursday morning, backers of the academy sent an e-mail to supporters asking for help recruiting a Republican senator to co-sponsor the legislation.

"Almost exactly one year ago, at my desk in a small house out in the Mississippi countryside," said Chris Myers Asch, a former teacher, "I wrote the first sentence of a mission statement for a national public service university. Today, we are on the verge of introducing the Public Service Academy Act in the U.S. Congress."

The idea is to inject prestige back into public institutions. The 5,000-person undergraduate academy would be free to students, costing taxpayers $205 million a year. Students, nominated by members of Congress in a process much like that at the military academies, would be required to study abroad and to complete internships with nonprofit and military organizations. They also would undergo a summer of emergency response training.

After graduation, students would repay the country for their free education by spending at least five years in public service, working for either nonprofits or the government.

Asch, who came to Washington to lobby for the academy after founding a nonprofit to encourage college attendance in the poverty-stricken Mississippi Delta, already had signed on Reps. Jim Moran, D-Va., and Christopher Shays, R-Conn., and Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y. to introduce the bill.

He listed Sens. Arlen Specter, R-Pa.; John McCain, R-Ariz.; Olympia Snowe, R-Maine; Elizabeth Dole, R-N.C.; and Sam Brownback, R-Kan., as five possible targets to join them.

"We need your help," Asch said. "We have spoken with a number of senators who have expressed interest in the bill, but they have not made a firm commitment to co-sponsor. We think that they could be convinced to join our effort if they were to hear from people."

Less than 24 hours after his request, Asch sent another message to supporters announcing that Specter had agreed. He said he does not expect a vote on the bill before November's elections.

"It is an important step," Asch said. "We soon will have a bill with a name and a number, and we can begin building support for the bill nationwide."

The academy's supporters - which include former Education Department Secretary Richard Riley and retired Lt. Gen. Dave Palmer, former head of West Point - readily agree they have a long haul in Congress. New appropriations could be tough to secure with a $260 billion U.S. deficit.