What Susan Wild's Lehigh Classroom Tells Policy Students

Susan Wild, a former U.S. representative and longtime Lehigh Valley attorney, began teaching at Lehigh University in fall 2026. Her upper-level health policy course enrolled more than 20 students and filled within days, according to Lehigh's news office.

That speed raises a question for MPA and MPP programs: what changes when a former elected official, not a career academic, runs the seminar? Schools gain legislative experience and a deep contact list. They also take on questions about political perception and whether a résumé translates into teaching.

Student demand for public administration education is clear. What those students receive depends on how the appointment is built.

What Susan Wild Is Teaching at Lehigh

More than 20 students enrolled in Susan Wild's upper-level health policy course at Lehigh University, and the section filled within days. Wild, a former U.S. representative and longtime Lehigh Valley attorney, began teaching at Lehigh in fall 2026, according to Lehigh University News, which published its account on October 6, 2026.

How the Course Is Built

The course runs on discussion, participation, and debate rather than lecture. Students present arguments about healthcare and, in the process, build public-speaking skills. That design treats public policy as an argument made before an audience, closer to how legislative and agency work actually happens than a paper-only seminar.

Guest speakers extend that approach. Dale Dangleben, chief of surgery and trauma medical director at Penn State Health Holy Spirit Medical Center, met with the class to discuss his path from immigrant to trauma surgeon in the U.S. and his observations on the American health care system. Wild has described her knack for connecting people as a form of matchmaking, and a clinician's perspective in a policy classroom is that skill at work.

Where It Sits at Lehigh

The course sits in Lehigh's College of Health and is tied to Health, Medicine and Society (HMS). The university catalog describes HMS as an interdisciplinary major administered jointly by the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Health.¹ Michael K. Gusmano is interim dean of the College of Health and an HMS co-director. Lucy Napper, a psychology professor, is the other HMS co-director.

What Is Not Publicly Documented

Treat the details below with caution, because the available sources do not settle them:

• Formal title: The news story does not give Wild a specific faculty or fellow title.
• Appointment length: Only the fall 2026 start is stated. Whether the role is for one semester, a year, or longer is not specified.
• Course title: The 2026-27 catalog's HMS listing does not show a course matching the one described in the news story.¹

MPA or MPP applicants and programs weighing similar hires should ask for these specifics directly rather than infer them.

Why Policy Schools Recruit Former Lawmakers

A famous name can fill a seat, but it cannot teach negotiation. Schools of public policy weighing a former official have to ask whether the hire brings a résumé or a working toolkit. The better cases bring the toolkit, and several reasons explain the appeal.

What Schools Are Buying

• Networks and guest access: Former officials know the clinicians, advocates, staff, and agency leaders who can visit a class. Susan Wild's Lehigh course, for example, hosted Dale Dangleben, chief of surgery and trauma medical director at Penn State Health Holy Spirit Medical Center, who spoke about his path from immigrant to trauma surgeon and his view of the U.S. health care system.
• Credibility with students: Someone who has voted on, defended, and implemented policy can speak to the tradeoffs of evidence-based policymaking that textbooks flatten.
• Enrollment appeal: Wild's upper-level health policy course drew more than 20 students and filled within days. Interest like that suggests demand for practitioner-led teaching, though a single course cannot prove what drove it.
• Applied skills: The course centers on discussion, participation, and debate, with students presenting arguments about healthcare and building public-speaking skills.

Convener Versus Lecturer

Wild has described her ability to connect people as a form of matchmaking. That is a different job from lecturing. A lecturer transmits content. A convener assembles the right people in the room and lets students learn by engaging them directly.

Fit With MPA and MPP Outcomes

That convener role lines up with what MPA and MPP programs say they build: negotiation, testimony, coalition building, and stakeholder engagement. Those competencies are hard to assess through exams. Debate, presentations, and structured conversations with practitioners give students repeated practice and give faculty something concrete to evaluate.

Four Models for Putting Former Officials in Policy Education

Universities bring former lawmakers onto campus in very different ways, and the structure of the appointment shapes what students actually get. Recent announcements from Harvard, George Mason, UC Berkeley, and Lehigh show a range from short residencies to credit-bearing courses. For students weighing MPA and MPP programs, ask whether a practitioner is grading your work or mainly visiting it.

Related Articles

A former lawmaker adds the most value when the course turns political experience into skills students can show: arguing a position, presenting evidence, and engaging stakeholders.

publicadministrationpolicy.org editorial analysis

How Can Students Get the Most From Practitioner-Led Faculty?

A former lawmaker on the faculty is only an asset if you engage deliberately and early. Demand can be intense: Susan Wild's upper-level health policy course at Lehigh enrolled more than 20 students and filled within days of opening in fall 2026. Use this sequence to turn a single course into a durable professional connection.

Questions to Ask MPA and MPP Programs About Practitioner Faculty

A former official on the faculty roster only matters if you can reach that person and learn from them. Add these questions to your program selection criteria, and use the answers to compare how each curriculum turns practitioner experience into skills you can demonstrate.

• Who teaches core courses, and who teaches electives or seminars?

  Practitioners often teach upper-level electives, so confirm whether you will meet them in required coursework or only by choice.
• What are the appointment terms and renewal plans?

  A one-semester visiting role offers less continuity for mentorship and recommendation letters than a multiyear professor-of-practice appointment.
• How often do practitioners guest lecture, and are sessions open to all students?

  Wild's Lehigh course enrolled just over 20 students and filled within days, so ask whether speakers and events reach beyond small enrolled sections.
• Are practitioners tied to capstones, clients, or internships?

  Network access is most useful when it connects to applied projects, client work, and placements.
• How is student learning assessed in practitioner-led courses?

  Look for graded debates, presentations, and policy memos that build demonstrable skills.
• How does the program keep practitioner-led courses balanced?

  Former elected officials bring partisan histories, so ask how the curriculum ensures students engage multiple viewpoints.