The widening cracks in the foundations of American democracy are leading to appeals for higher educational institutions generally, and public affairs programs specifically, to offer more courses on civil discourse. In this paper, we conduct a curriculum scan to evaluate the extent to which public affairs programs have answered these calls at the…

This article investigates transformations in public service education over the past 50 years, specifically: How have organizational forms evolved, and what lessons can we draw from that evolution? The organizational form construct originates in population ecology theory. We draw from a variety of evidentiary sources in answering the research…

This article outlines how Master of Public Administration (MPA)/Master of Public Policy (MPP) programs can integrate a project-based learning opportunity to study curricular design and accreditation needs in their quantitative courses. Bridging together theory and the practical implications of data collection and analysis is important for…

Diversity, cultural competency, and global awareness are three broad and mutually reinforcing conceptual themes in the literature of American public affairs education that are rarely implicitly interconnected. A primary challenge has concerned how to teach these themes, either separately or in unison, when designing courses and curricula to…

The work of crafting sustainable solutions to complex policy problems requires decision makers and implementers to secure buy-in from a diverse set of stakeholders. Those stakeholders operate in policy ecosystems that span public, for-profit, nonprofit, and entrepreneurial sectors. This increasingly complex landscape requires schools of public…

The study collected data from ProQuest Dissertations and Theses database for years 2000 and 2015 in order to explore shifts in public affairs doctoral research. Results indicated a dramatic increase for online doctoral dissertations with 20% of all public administration and public policy dissertations produced from online, for-profit institutions…

Tribal nations have entered an era of nation building or the process by which a native nation enhances its foundational capacity for effective self-governance and self-determination. While many tribal nations have become more economically secure in recent years, legitimacy has remained elusive for some. Successful tribal nations, alongside…

This article examines current and previous practitioner experiences of faculty in Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration accredited programs. Using original survey data, this study demonstrates that a majority of Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration program faculty members have prior or current…

US public adult basic skills education, as adult education researcher Thomas Sticht has often pointed out, is on the margins of public education. By many measures, in the past decade it has experienced significant further decline. In the last decade and a half, according to Sticht's (2015) analysis, "enrollments in the Adult Education and…

Purpose: This purpose of this study is to examine the extent to which accreditation of public affairs programs can be a tool to advance social equity, diversity, and inclusion. The paper is presented in the context of the widespread acceptance of the importance of addressing social inequalities in Latin America and the critical role that public…

The executive director of the Public Agenda Foundation tells how to spot emerging issues for public discussion and characteristics of such issues. (PD)

Describes the efforts of civic, educational, and scholarly groups organized in 1981 to develop a better system for educating citizens about public policy--the National Issues Forum. (PD)

The three essays in this collection (the third in a series) explore the implications of free speech, the roots of American foreign policy, and the relation between U.S. political tradition and the formulation of policies on energy. Each essay is accompanied by a commentary. The essays, their authors, and the commentaries are: "The Pig in the…

Describes major events and conferences leading to the formation of a national association that would identify critical issues facing the nation and, through its National Issues Forum, would create a new kind of citizens' dialogue based on informed public discussion of national issues. (PD)

Adult educators can succeed as public policy educators with these principles: (1) trust in democracy, (2) believe that effective policy improvement can be taught, (3) teach about policy issues, (4) develop a knowledge base, (5) do not advocate a particular policy, (6) promote local leadership, (7) cultivate a supportive institution, and (8) be…