Spring
2010
DU 246
Tuesday/Thursday
Professor: Kimberly Nelson, Ph.D.
Office: 211
Email: klnelson@niu.edu Office
hours: Tuesday & Thursday
and
by appointment
This course is designed
as a broad introduction to public administration. Public administration differs from many other
areas in academia in that it has a strong practical component. POLS 331 will introduce students to both the
theoretical and practical sides of public administration. Among the topics we will cover this semester
are major theories of management, the policy process, and the relationship
between politics and administration.
Upon completion of the course, students will
have a general understanding of the history and practice of public
administration. Students will also learn
basic concepts from the fields of public budgeting, human resources, and
strategic management.
Required Text:
Garvey, Gerald, 1997. Public
Administration: The Profession and Practice (A Case Study Approach).
Recommended:
Balanoff, Howard (ed.), 2007. Annual
Editions: Public Policy and Administration.
Other readings are
available via Blackboard.
Course
Requirements:
Reading reflections (10
collected randomly throughout the semester) 10%
Midterm examination 20%
Final examination 20%
Research project 25%
Outline and list of references (20% of
project grade; 5% of course grade)
Final paper (80% of project grade; 20%
of course grade))
Case study submissions (2
@ 10% each) 20%
In-class exercises 5%
Format: All assignments should be
typed in 12-point Times New Roman font.
They should be double-spaced with 1-inch margins. Assignments are due on the date listed on the
syllabus, in hard copy format, at the beginning of the class meeting. In addition, all assignments (except for exam corrections) must be uploaded to
SafeAssign via Blackboard (you have until the next class meeting to upload the
assignment without penalty). If you have
technical difficulties with uploading to SafeAssign, contact ITS. Assignments not submitted on time in hard
copy format and uploaded to Blackboard will not be credited toward your grade. All late assignments will receive
a one-letter grade deduction per day late.
Please see me as soon as possible if you have questions or concerns
about an assignment.
Reading reflections:
In lieu of taking daily attendance, throughout the
semester, I will randomly collect a short writing assignment (students are
required to complete this assignment for every class that has a reading
assigned, though I will not collect them every time). For this assignment, you
will type (not handwrite) three questions or points of clarification about the
reading assignment for the day. In other words, Students
will identify three things from the reading that they either found interesting
or did not understand. They will then
summarize these items in 2-5 sentences. These will not be accepted
late.
Exams:
The
examinations will be in-class (dates are listed on the schedule). The exams are not comprehensive. Exams will have a mixed format which may
include, but is not be limited to, multiple choice, definitions, short answer,
and true/false questions. Make-up exams
will only be given in extreme emergencies and only with prior notice to
Professor Nelson. An unexcused absence
on the date of an exam will result in a score of zero for that exam.
Exam
grades for the first exam will not be curved.
In lieu of a curve, students will have the opportunity to correct their
exam and return the original exam and corrections at the next class
meeting. Corrections should be typed on
a separate piece of paper. For the multiple-choice
questions, an explanation as to why the answer is correct is needed. Students submitting corrected exams will
receive up to ½ of the points missed added to the exam grade. No late resubmissions will be accepted. If you do not attend class the day the exams
are handed out (and you do not have an excused absence) you will not have the
opportunity to make the corrections.
Research Project
Each student must complete a research project (6-8 pages)
that is due at the end of the semester.
The project consists of a preliminary outline and bibliography to be
submitted in February and a completed paper that is due in April. A grading rubric is available on Blackboard that
explains how the assignment will be evaluated.
In addition, on Blackboard, there is a sample paper by a student who
received an A on a similar assignment to give you an example of what
constitutes A work.
In this
assignment, you will essentially be creating your own case study.
Identify the case. Using the newspaper, online
legitimate news sources, or news magazines (Time,
Newsweek, etc.), select a current
event related to public administration.
Avoid issues that are solely political or that are primarily the concern
of the private sector. This will serve
as your case or example to which you will apply findings from academic
literature.
Apply to public administration.
Determine
which unit we are covering this semester most closely fits the issue you have
selected (fitting your issue into a
broader topic will help you identify the necessary journal sources). Find 3-5
academic sources related to this
topic (academic sources are peer-reviewed journal articles that we discussed at
the beginning of the semester, see list available through the hyperlink; if you
find articles in other journals, you should consult with me before using them).
These sources should be directly related
to a public
administration concept or theory.
The sources should also be related to each other.
Outline and list of sources. Write a detailed outline of
your paper and compose your bibliography.
Submit both on February 4. Before starting the outline, write your
thesis statement at the top of the page.
Then, using the rough outline below, complete a detailed outline of your
paper. On a separate page, draft a
bibliography using either the
For the completed paper, using the articles and your knowledge of the current event
from news accounts, write up a written report with the following sections:
1)
Introduction
a.
Brief
description of the event/issue
b.
Explain
why it the issue is important from a public administration perspective
c.
Thesis
statement—how are you relating the case to public administration?
2)
Describe
the findings from the academic literature and relate those findings back to the
current event.
a.
What
lessons from the academic literature can be applied to the current event case?
3)
Conclusion
a.
Sum
up your main points
Example:
If you selected the topic of the debate about healthcare reform, you
might choose to look at it from the perspective of ethics (one of the units
from the class). Ideally, you would try to find academic sources that address
ethical issues in healthcare reform, or something close to that. For example, there are many sources that
address accountability issues with privatizing Medicaid and Medicare. The incorrect approach to this assignment is
to explain the issue of health care reform in general without directly applying
it to public administration.
Case Study Analyses
Each student is required to complete two (2) case study
analysis projects and submit them for a grade.
Case studies and their due dates are listed on the syllabus. Cases can be found in the Garvey text. The questions at the end of each case are
often helpful to complete the assignment.
In paragraph form (3-5 pages), the case analysis should include the
following sections:
1)
Clearly
and succinctly, describe the problem or issue that is the subject of the case. Use names to identify key actors in the case
(not all actors).
2)
Identify
those problems or issues that should be the priority for resolution. Do not
list all of the issues, only select those that you believe are most
significant. Be sure to use those that
are most relevant to the public administration concept we are covering in class
that week. Relate the issues to the
chapter reading.
3)
Identify
and evaluate no more than three relevant potential courses of action. Describe each and state their strengths and
weaknesses, again, use the chapter reading as your guide.
4)
Choose
the alternative that you believe is most appropriate and justify your choice.
A case analysis is not a description of the case. It is a critical analysis of the major issues
of concern in the case. A summary of the
case is not sufficient for this assignment.
A grading rubric is available on Blackboard.
If you choose not to turn in a written case analysis in a
given week, you must still read the case and be prepared to discuss the
questions at the end of the case. Case
studies cannot be turned in late without a documented emergency.
Attendance and Participation:
In lieu of taking daily attendance, I will randomly
collect the reading reflection assignments and collect papers from in-class
assignments. These assignments,
collectively, represent more than a full letter grade for the class. You
will only receive credit if you are in class on the day they are collected.
It is important that you
attend class as much as possible. The
case study method depends on adequate student participation and attendance in
order to learn the material presented. It
is difficult to do well on the exams without attending class. In addition, you will need to participate in
the in-class exercises, providing evidence that you read the case study for the
week, to receive credit for the class exercises portion of the grade.
Routine lateness is also
unacceptable. I will collect the reading
reflections at the beginning of class, if you are not there when they are
collected, you will not receive credit.
Academic Integrity: Students are required to adhere to NIU’s code of student
conduct for academic integrity.
Violations will result in a failed grade on the assignment and possibly
the class. In addition, the professor
may choose to submit your offense to the office of judicial affairs.
You
are expected to ensure that all assignments submitted for a grade reflect
substantially your own work, that
work submitted under your name is substantially original, and that you have understood and learned the competencies
in each assignment and not relied primarily on the knowledge of others. Students whose work is substantially plagiarized
from others will receive an F on that assignment or exam. If you are unclear of what actions constitute
plagiarism, please see me.
For
further reference, refer to the web resource from the Department of Political
Science on plagiarism:
http://polisci.niu.edu/polisci/audience/plagiarism.shtml.
The
English Department also has an informative webpage on plagiarism; it can be
found here: http://www.engl.niu.edu/composition/guidelines/plag.shtml.
Students
with Disabilities
Under Section 504
of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, NIU is committed to making reasonable
accommodations for persons with documented disabilities. Those students with
disabilities that may have an impact on their course work must register with
the NIU Center for Access-Ability Resources
(CAAR) on the fourth floor of the
Department of Political Science Web Site
Undergraduates are
strongly encouraged to consult the Department of Political Science web site on
a regular basis. This up-to-date,
central source of information will assist students in contacting faculty and
staff, reviewing course requirements and syllabi, exploring graduate study,
research career options, tracking department events, and accessing important
details related to undergraduate programs and activities. To reach the site, go to http://polisci.niu.edu
Undergraduate Writing Awards
The Department of
Political Science will recognize, on an annual basis, outstanding undergraduate
papers written in conjunction with 300-400 level political science courses or
directed studies. Authors do not have to
be political science majors or have a particular class standing. Winners are expected to attend the
Department’s spring graduation ceremony, where they will receive a certificate
and $50.00. Papers, which can be
submitted by students or faculty, must be supplied in triplicate to a
department secretary by the end of March.
All copies should have two cover pages – one with the student’s name and
one without the student’s name. Only
papers written in the previous calendar year can be considered for the
award. However, papers completed in the
current spring semester are eligible for the following year’s competition even
if the student has graduated.
Classroom Decorum
Students are to
arrive at class on time. Students are to
remain for the entire session unless excused by the professor beforehand or
confronted with a serious personal emergency.
For instance, it is not acceptable to students to walk in and out of
class to answer cell phones, take casual bathroom and smoking breaks, or attend
to other personal matters. Cell phones,
pagers, or any electronic devices that make noise must be turned off during
class unless the instructor has been notified beforehand of a special
circumstance (e.g., sick family member, pregnant wife, special childcare situation,
etc.). No one should talk while someone
else is talking; this includes comments meant for a classmate rather than the
entire group. What may seem like a
whisper or a harmless remark to one person can be a distraction to someone
else, particularly in a small room.
Overall, classroom dialogue and behavior should always be courteous,
respectful of others, and consistent with the expectations set forth by the
university.
Class Schedule:
This schedule is subject to change.
Some links may have changed since preparation of this syllabus.
DATE
|
TOPIC |
ASSIGNMENT DUE |
|
Jan. 12 |
Introduction Understanding
case studies |
Chapter 1, Garvey |
|
Jan. 14 |
Writing and
researching in public administration |
Chapter 1, Writing
for the Government (on Blackboard) Curriculum and
Case Notes, Boehrer (on Blackboard) Hurricane
Katrina Case (on Blackboard) Handout on Blackboard—Researching Academic
Sources |
|
Jan. 19 |
Context of public administration—historical development & basic
concepts; public vs. private |
Johnson, Chapter 1, “Public Administration, The
People’s Business” pp. 1-10 only (on Blackboard) |
|
Jan. 21 |
Chapter 6, Garvey: What’s Public? What’s
Private? pp. 219-229 only Guest Speakers: Current MPA Students |
|
|
Jan. 26 |
Government
institutions, federalism, and intergovernmental relations |
Johnson, Chapter 2, “The Mosaic of American
Governments” pp. 25-41 only (on Blackboard) Guest Speaker: |
|
Jan. 28 |
Chapter 7, Garvey,
Federalism and Intergovernmental Relations Case 6—due January 28 |
|
|
Feb. 2 |
Public policymaking & power |
Johnson, Chapter 6, “From Public Purposes to Public Policies” (on Blackboard) Research paper
outlines and bibliographies due February 4 |
|
Feb. 4 |
||
|
Feb. 9 |
Organization
Theory |
Chapter 3, Garvey,
Introduction to Organizational Theory Case 2—due February 11 |
|
Feb. 11 |
||
|
Feb. 16 |
Organization Behavior--Motivation |
Chapter
10, Garvey, Making the Human Connection Guest
Speaker: Employee Motivation Review for Midterm |
|
Feb. 18 |
||
|
Feb. 23 |
Midterm Exam |
|
|
Feb. 25 |
Film: Ghosts of
Abu Ghraib |
Annual Editions, |
|
Mar. 2 |
Ethics (exams will be handed back) |
Chapter 8, Garvey, Introduction to Ethics ICMA Code of Ethics: http://www.njmma.org/ethics.pdf |
|
Mar. 4 |
Ethics (continued) |
Corrected exams due |
|
Mar. 9-11 |
Spring Break |
|
|
Mar. 16 |
Accountability vs. Discretion |
Chapter 4, Garvey, Democratic Accountability vs. Administrative
Discretion Dubnick—Accountability & Ethics (on Blackboard) Case 3—due March 4 |
|
Mar. 18 |
||
|
Mar. 23 |
Decision theory/policy implementation |
Chapter
11, Garvey, Modern Decision Theory Case 10—Due March 25 |
|
Mar. 25 |
||
|
Mar. 30 |
Leadership |
Cropf,
Chapter 10, “Leadership and Public Administration” (on Blackboard) |
|
April 1 |
||
|
April 6 |
Personnel/Human
Resources Management (Guest speaker on HR) |
Chapter
2, Garvey, Public Personnel Administration Case 1—due April 6 Annual
Editions, Reading #13 Organizational
Culture |
DATE |
TOPIC |
ASSIGNMENT DUE |
|
April 13 |
Civil Society
& Current Public Administration Policy Issues |
Cropf, Chapter
6, “Civil Society and Public Administration (on Blackboard) Annual Editions,
Reading #2 The State of Guest
speaker: Citizen engagement |
|
April 15 |
Public Finance
& Budgeting |
Johnson, Chapter 9, “Public Money” (on Blackboard) Annual Editions, Reading #18 Enron/Andersen |
|
April 20 |
||
|
April 22 |
New Governance |
Johnson, Chapter 4 “Private Partners in Public
Administration” Annual Editions, Guest speaker: Jessica
French. Little City Foundation |
|
April 27 |
Program
Evaluation
|
Chapter 9, Garvey, Formal Policy Analysis Annual Editions, Reading #6 Evidence-Based
Management
|
|
April 29 |
Last Class—Review for Final/Catch-Up
Day—Research Papers Due |
|
|
May 6 |
Final Exam— |
|