Public Administration (PADM)

Examines the city and its origins, districts, and geographical areas, cultural enclaves, contemporary issues, and effective urban communities.

Can be taken for letter (A-F), CRD/NCR, audit, or challenge.

Examines legal, constitutional, and historical foundations of public administration. Explores key themes in current public administration. Also PLSC 323.

Student-designed courses approved by a faculty member. Prior approval of goals, objectives, procedures, and assessment plan as directed in the Independent Study Manual is required. May be taken multiple times with a different topic for credit. Not challengeable.

Examines policy-making context of public and private organizations, emphasizing influence of bureaucracy. MGMT 436.

Planning for change; the nature and sources of environmental and organizational conflict; strategies for change and conflict resolution.

Can be taken for letter grade (A-F), CRD/NCR, Audit, or challenge.

Culminating activity required by majors in all departments. Papers/theses/projects researched, prepared, and written under the guidance of a faculty member. Comprehensive exams or recitals required in some departments. Academically, Students must be in Good Standing to enroll in 496. May be taken for letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course examines public service perspectives and issues. The course compares and contrasts the role of the public and private sectors in our society. The course further emphasizes the distinct contributions made by the public and nonprofit sectors by introducing concepts related to sustainability, civic engagement, inclusion, and globalization. This course also provides an introduction to the core values and competencies that prepare professionals to take on socially responsible roles in public leadership and service. Required to be taken at the beginning of the program, when first offered on the course schedule. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

Direct, inclusive, and transparent communication is critical to effectively working with organizational leaders and diverse communities. This course focuses on communication by public service and nonprofit professionals. Topics may include: writing memoranda and staff reports, professional email, cross-cultural communication, videoconferencing, websites, social media, strategic community outreach, town halls, and crisis communication. Letter grade only. Not challengeable. 3 credit hours.

Analyzes contemporary theories of leadership and their applicability on the public and nonprofit sectors. The course also emphasizes the range of behaviors and actions relevant to leadership in contemporary governmental organizations and the analysis of factors resulting in leadership success or failure. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course emphasizes how different types of nonprofit organizations are governed and structured. The legal roles and responsibilities for board members, executive directors, staff, and volunteers are addressed. The course also examines strategies for effective governance by boards, executive leadership, and management. Students develop the capacity to identify and resolve common governance and regulatory challenges. Required course within the Nonprofit Management and Governance concentration. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course examines grant management in a holistic manner, to include researching grant opportunities, writing grants, and managing grants. Students explore various types of funders, practice the skills associated with writing effective proposals, and learn the essentials of managing a grant once it has been awarded. The course is applicable to careers in the nonprofit sector as well as government, community development, education, faith-based organizations, healthcare, and social services. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course concentrates on the knowledge, planning, and organization required to fund and sustain nonprofit organizations, community-based foundations, educational institutions, and other types of organizations that rely on donated funds. Students examine the role of fundraising within organizations, how to foster a culture of philanthropy, and how fundraising aligns with organizational needs and values. Students learn specific strategies for taking a balanced approach to fundraising and accomplishing objectives in a cost-effective, ethical, transparent, and inclusive manner. Students explore fundraising tools, donor motivations, and trends that frame fundraising approaches. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

Examination of theories related to organizations and employee development as they pertain to the public and nonprofit sectors. Themes may include foundational theories; organizational structure and design; organizational culture; diversity and inclusivity; career development; generational differences and succession planning; and/or organizational change.

Examines policy agenda-setting and formation. Includes problem definition and focusing events, interest group and policy entrepreneur involvement, policy development, and legislative processes.

Emphasizes budgeting and financial management in the public sector. The course focuses on fiscal sustainability, transparency, and accountability issues. Students gain an understanding of fiscal tools and develop skills for budgeting and fiscal analysis. Familiarity with Microsoft Excel is recommended.

Provides a review of theories and tools utilized in the analysis of public policy. Emphasis is placed on how policy can be informed through extended civic and deliberative processes. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course emphasizes and describes the skills needed by public administrators in collaborating with special interest groups, political appointees and elected officials. This course focuses on the practice of public administration as governance in a shared powered world. The course focuses on the value of networks and the skills needed by public administrators in the facilitation of and participation in networks of governance.

Studies moral reasoning and values as they apply to social responsibility in the leadership of public, private, and non-profit entities in increasingly diverse organizational and social contexts.

Examines legal foundations and environment of public administration in the United States. It analyzes how constitutional dynamics and administrative law affect the administrative state, judicial review, and the discretionary judgment of civil servants.

Examines urban populations, governance, and civic engagement. Themes may include demographic trends in urban and suburban areas; economic development; interactions among managers, elected officials, and community leaders; civic participation and community groups. Required course within the Urban Management and Affairs Concentration. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course provides a review of theories and tools utilized in the conceptualizing and managing in complex urban systems. The course focuses on two aspects of managing complexity: (1) Managing a complex organization; and (2) Managing within a complex urban system. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

Detailed examination of particular policy issues. Includes research and analysis, along with development of professional reports and presentations. May include projects for particular public and nonprofit organizations. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course focuses on best practices and processes in other regions, states, or countries that involve successful program implementation, positive policy outcomes, and the creation of public value. The course explores social, cultural, historic, and economic characteristics and how these may lead to differing policy orientations, implementation strategies, and outcomes. This course usually includes a several-day travel component with extra fees and expenses. This course may be applied to any concentration.

This course is designed to develop a practical competence in quantitative and qualitative analytical techniques for managers in the public and non-profit sectors. Familiarity with Microsoft Excel is recommended. Can be taken for letter grade only. Not challengeable.

Explores public economics. Topics include theories of public goods, externalities, asymmetric information, efficiency-equity tradeoff, and issues involved in government failure. Course can be taken for letter grade only. Not challengeable.

Provides an overview of local and planning processes with an orientation towards planning for economic, social, and ecological long-term well being of the community. The course focuses on issues of New Urbanism as a means to develop, manage, and redevelop communities in metropolitan areas. Course can be taken for letter grade only. Not challengeable.

Consists of selected topics of current interest and importance.

Culminating Activity for the master's program. Includes preparation, presentation, discussion and evaluation of research papers researched and written by each student. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course provides internship in government or non-profit service. Directed study only. Credit/no credit only. Not challengeable.

Student-designed courses approved by a faculty member. Prior approval of goals, objectives, procedures, and assessment plan as directed in the Independent Study Manual is required. May be taken multiple times with a different topic for credit. Not challengeable.

Introduction to public administration inquiry and research. Students will gain an understanding of the different types of scholarship in public administration. The course examines different types of research designs and methodologies along with public administration research topics and emerging areas of inquiry. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course will examine the legal foundation and environment of public administration. It will consider the intellectual, institutional, and constitutional dynamics of public administration scholarship and practice. Emphasis will be placed on how the Constitution affects the administrative state as well as how the federal judiciary shapes the public administrative process. This course will explore the need for public managers to exhibit constitutional competence while simultaneously examining how constitutional and administrative law influences the decision-making processes and discretionary judgments of civil servants working in public agencies.

This course examines the intellectual/philosophical foundation of public administration and surveys the primary theories of public administration. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

Continues "Methods" sequence with qualitative methods of analysis (e.g., content analysis, interviews, surveys). Letter grade only.

The purpose of this course is to provide students with quantitative analysis skills and to introduce SPSS for data analysis in order to apply statistical techniques to public administration and policy research. Letter grade only.

This course examines the nature and problems of organizational design, development, and change in complex organizations. Focus will be placed on the application of organizational theories in the treatment of the myriad of issues confronted by the public administrator with regard to effective public management. Theories of organizational growth, change, and development and their impact on organizational outcomes will be explored.

This course is an exploration of policy analysis. Foundational theories of policy development and implementation will be explored. Focus will be placed on public policy analysis and methodologies.

This course focuses on the emergence of within and cross-sector relationships in metropolitan government, including public-private partnerships, regional collaboration, governance networks and citizen engagement. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

Overview of economic perspectives such as public choice, and new institutional economics, along with their application to the provision of public services and policy analysis. Topics may include market and government failures, privatization and competition, public goods, equity concerns, and political behavior. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course focuses on how governance and urban planning shape cities and surrounding regions. A foundation in the nature of urban policy, its formulation, evaluation, and implementation will be provided. Focus will be placed on topics of timely importance that may include but are not limited to: national and regional urban politics, the politics of land-use and social planning, suburbanization and gentrification, and race and immigration. Additional themes may include citizen participation and urban social movements; equity issues in urban place-making; and theories regarding the balance of public and private action in urban politics. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course is an applied, action research course centered on further developing civic professionalism. This course is taught in two parts and is made up of an ongoing project which the student will develop around their chosen research field. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course is an applied, action research course centered on further developing civic professionalism. This is the second of two courses. In this course, students will complete their ongoing civic engagement project. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course is designed to inform students of the general parameters of the dissertation process and to facilitate the initial development and design of a dissertation research project. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

A review of research methods and techniques used in program evaluation and performance management, with an emphasis on public and nonprofit social programs. The course covers issues related to research design, sampling, data collection, performance measures, benchmarking, and data analysis.

A review of philosophical foundations of ethical approaches to public service. The course includes a focus on democratic participation, as well as social and civic responsibility.

This course is designed to engage students in the development of a dissertation proposal. A continuation of the development and design of a dissertation research project. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

The purpose of this course is to provide students with skills in statistical inference. Specifically, the course introduces the multiple regression models for public administration and policy research. It covers probability, hypothesis testing, and statistical estimation to build skills in regression analysis.

Selected Topics for DPA Students. May be taken multiple times with a different topic for credit. Not challengeable.

This course is the first of three courses designed to help students begin dissertation research and writing. In this course students will work with faculty on the development of a problem statement, research questions, and a literature review. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course is the second of three courses designed to help students continue their work on dissertation research and writing. In this course students will work with faculty on the development of a methodology. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

This course is the third of three courses designed to help students continue their work on dissertation research and writing. In this course students will work with faculty on the development of a dissertation proposal. Letter grade only. Not challengeable.

Development and design of a research prospectus as a foundation for dissertation research.

Student-designed courses approved by a faculty member. Prior approval of goals, objectives, procedures, and assessment plan as directed in the Independent Study Manual is required. May be taken multiple times with a different topic for credit. Not challengeable.