Service-First Leadership
The 10th annual COA Summer Institute welcomes Emily Cherniack, founder and executive director of New Politics.
What does a background in service bring to political leadership—and to citizenship more broadly? Emily Cherniack draws on her work building New Politics and her experience in political organizing to explore how military and civilian service—from the armed forces to the Peace Corps—can shape more effective and grounded leaders. She reflects on why service has long been a pathway into public life, what it offers in today’s political environment, and how more candidates with this experience can be encouraged to step forward. More broadly, the conversation considers how a culture of service can deepen civic engagement and strengthen the habits of citizenship on which democracy depends. At a moment that calls for renewed trust in institutions and one another, it explores the role service-based leadership can play in moving us toward a more resilient and connected society.
The 2026 Summer Institute: Toward a More Perfect Union will mark the country’s 250th anniversary with a forward-looking series of conversations about the future of the American experiment. By late July, we anticipate that audiences will have encountered plenty of historical retrospectives and the predictable swing between overly patriotic and overly critical narratives. Our goal is different: To convene voices from across American culture—journalism, the arts, science, philanthropy, civic life, and beyond—and explore how the nation’s founding values have been, and continue to be, tested, reshaped, and reimagined. The Institute asks how these ideals can be stewarded, strengthened, and carried into the future.