Mark Croatti

What are you doing now? 

I am an educator and a journalist in the greater Washington, D.C. region. I teach college classes, I tutor English writing to students of all ages, and I cover politics for a regional magazine.

How has the Fellowship impacted your career?

The Fellowship had a huge impact on me. First, I fell in love with Washington, DC. It made me want to move here after college. Second, the briefings with elected and other federal officials—for me it was Treasury Secretary James Baker, Supreme Court Justice, and Sandra Day O’Connor, and Kenneth Duberstein (President Reagan’s Chief of Staff)—inspired me to seek a career in public service and to do my part to make the world a better place; they just created a surging desire to move to Washington, D.C. And third, as a college instructor, I have set up the same kinds of briefings for my own students at over 75 foreign embassies and dozens of government agencies, non-partisan think tanks, and non-profits, all trying to influence policy on an infinite number of issues.

What is your favorite memory of the Fellowship?

Back then (1987-88) the annual fall and spring conferences were attended by not only the Fellows but 300-400 students from all around the world, from which the following year’s Fellows would be selected. To get selected, you almost had to campaign and impress the current Fellows as well as other conference attendees. That process—making friends, meeting people from all over the country, forming friendships that lasted for years—was thrilling for me. I remember that the NCAA Tournament was going on during the spring conference and we all, hundreds of us, kept tabs on how our own colleges were doing and whose schools advanced that weekend (and whose didn’t). You could feel the electricity in the air, both an awareness of the power of the nation’s capital and the ability to harness it to make an impact on people’s lives. You could cut the excitement with a knife!

If you could have any job in the world, what would you do?

I have the job I want—I teach political science in Washington, D.C., just as I dreamed I would as a Fellow. On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays I’m at the United States Naval Academy and on Tuesdays and Thursdays I’m at The George Washington University. At one school, I have a chance to teach students who are willing to put themselves in harm’s way to protect all of us, and at the other school, I have a chance to teach students who will someday be in the position to put the other students (and others) in harm’s way. Therefore, I have a chance to teach both sides the value of diplomacy, multilateralism, conflict resolution, and the benefits of promoting peace all over the world.

Originally published April 8, 2020.