Winter 2013

The March, 2013 issue of our School newsletter is hot off the virtual press. The content includes: KU MPAs have a long history with Kansas City, Missouri's Cookingham Noll Management Fellowship; The School's work at the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth; Upcoming professional development opportunities you won't want to miss; Updates from the KU Public Management Center; PUAD 831- opportunities to earn points; and... ...much more!

School Director and Associate Professor Marilu Goodyear served as the chair of a panel that reviewed the operations of the Government Printing Office during the fall of 2012. The panel's report, "Rebooting the Government Printing Office," was released in February by the National Academy of Public Administration. The report includes a total of 27 findings and 15 recommendations on how the GPO can best position itself in the digital age and ensure access to government documents at a time when demand for printed documents is decreasing. This article offers more information about the panel's review, and the full report can be acccessed here.

Associate Professor Holly Goerdel has had an article, "Politics versus Risk in Allocations of Federal Security Grants," published in Publius: The Journal of Federalism. Dr. Goerdel applied distributive political theory to determine whether politics or risk better determines government spending across four grant programs purposed for homeland security. In the article she tests a model of security funding with data from U.S. states from 2004 to 2006. The findings support politics over risk when programs are designed to award universal benefits to elected officials, such as with fair-sharing policies. However, she found that risk explains funding when programs award narrow, particularistic benefits, such as with urban security initiatives. A key conclusion is that fair-share strategies in grant politics can actually produce unfair allocation outcomes in the area of security. Further, she finds that protecting status quo formulas is in the interest of political actors, especially if they might otherwise lose opportunities to secure resources for constituents (state and local governments) in a distressed economy.

The School's faculty took to the air in 2012 to share their research and connect with colleagues all over the world. Read about their globetrotting adventures and learn about some of their current research interests in this article, exerpted from our most recent newsletter.

Our very own Ray Hummert is one of 11 ICMA Credentialed Managers recognized by the Credentialing Advisory Board of ICMA for an excellent 2012 annual report. As described on the ICMA website, every ICMA member in service to local government, whether credentialed or not, commits to 40 hours annually of professional development (Tenet 8 of the Code of Ethics). What distinguishes Credentialed Managers and Candidates is their commitment to plan for continuous personal improvement, to reflect upon their professional development activities, and to document their learning for peer review. In their reports, Credentialed Managers and Candidates clearly identify the professional development needs they sought to improve over the past year and then focus on what they learned. They provide at least one concrete example of something learned from each professional development activity. Yay, Ray for this recognition!

Governor designates January 2013 as Certified Public Manager Recognition Month Kansas Governor Sam Brownback signed a proclamation on December 19th, encouraging all Kansans to recognize certified public managers for their commitment to enhancing the quality and availability of government service. The CPM program, available through the School's Public Management Center, has been training public managers for 20 years.

THANKS TO THE MANY ALUMNI who have contributed to The John and Carol Nalbandian Scholarship in honor of the countless contributions the Nalbandians have made in the field of local government over their careers. Thanks to all of you, the Scholarship has reached the $30,000 required for full endowment and we are able to begin using it to support students. Read more about the fund and about John and Carol's work in our December 2012 newsletter. If you haven't contributed yet, we invite you to help us continue to grow the Scholarship. Follow this link to make a tax-deductible donation through the KU Endowment Association.

Our Public Management Center (PMC) received won the top award in the category of Workplace Learning and Performance (WLP) through Design and Development from the Kansas City Chapter of the American Society for Training and Development (KC-ASTD). The 2013 Best Practices award was given jointly to the PMC and the City of Kansas City, MO for the Ethics Training project the organizations developed in partnership with support from MARC. The training reached over 3,000 City employees in 132 sessions between November 2011 and April 2012. Bravo to Jonathan Morris, the Public Management Center's Curriculum and Delivery Manager, and to all of the PMC instructors who made this project possible in such a compressed time frame! Congratulations also to Gary O’Bannon, Director of Human Resources for the City of Kansas City, MO and Rebecca Lahann of KCMO’s Education and Development Division!

The December, 2012 issue of our School newsletter is hot off the virtual press. The content features all kinds of good stuff, including articles on: Exciting news about The John and Carol Nalbandian Scholarship; Highlights of our Faculty Globetrotters; a profile of an MPA alumnus who works for KPERS IT; Updates from the KU Public Management Center; The KUCIMATS Awards; and... ...much more!

Fall 2012

For those who can never get enough, there are several new ways to keep up with the happenings at the School. You can find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/kuspaa and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/kuspaa. And if that weren't enough, check out the growing collection of videos on our YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/KUPublicAdmin.

The City of Olathe’s supervisory training program, developed in partnership with our Public Management Center, was one of this year's 111 Bright Ideas recognized by The Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. The program’s focus is to apply the city’s vision, values, and mission to the role of the supervisor. Several initiatives were included in the training curriculum design in order to increase participant engagement and retention.as well as to more strongly link classroom learning to improved workplace performance and prepare employees to adapt to emerging needs.

The fall 2012 issue of our School newsletter is hot off the virtual press. The content features all kinds of good stuff, including articles on: the Inspiring Women conference held during the summer; highlights from ICMA president Bob O'Neill's talk at the School in September; a profile of an MPA alumnus who works with USAID in Afghanistan; the Bob Lowry scholarship and the new John and Carol Nalbandian Scholarship; the Emerging Leaders Academy, our succession planning initiative offered through the Public Management Center; and much more!

Welcome to Dr. Curt Wood who joins us as an affiliate faculty member. Curt earned his MPA at KU in 1980 and then spent 20 years in city government in Kansas, working in Salina, Hays, Pratt and Manhattan before entering the doctoral program in political science at KU. After completing his Ph.D., Curt joined the public administration faculty at Northern Illinois University and has become well regarded for his excellent teaching skills. He has retired from NIU and he and his wife have returned to Kansas--we are delighted that he'll be sharing some of his time with us. In this photo, Curt poses with his dissertation advisor at Dr. Frederickson's retirement banquet in April 2012. Photo thanks to Randy Edmonds.

Welcome to Rebecca Nesbit who has joined our faculty this fall as an assistant professor! Dr. Nesbit earned her MPA at Brigham Young University and received her Ph.D. in public affairs from the School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University, with a specialization in nonprofit management. Her research explores issues of philanthropy, volunteerism, public policy and management in the nonprofit sector with a focus on volunteer programs, volunteers’ characteristics and motivations, and volunteer management in public and nonprofit organizations. Her work has appeared in the journals Public Administration Review, the Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, Nonprofit Management and Leadership, and Administration & Society.

Our School has had the distinct privilege of hosting Bob O'Neill, president of the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) during the week of September 24-28. Bob is on sabbatical from ICMA this fall to reflect on the future of local government; we're one of only two public administration schools he's visiting to engage with researchers and practitioners to inform this process. Click here to read more about his visit.

Congratulations to Professor John Nalbandian who will receive the Chancellor's Club Career Teaching Award this fall! The award is presented annually to a senior KU faculty member who exemplifies the University's commitment to outstanding teaching.

Distinguished Professor George Frederickson will serve as the honorary chair of the 2013 American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) annual conference! The conference will be held March 15-19 at the New Orleans Riverside Hotel and will focus on Governance and Sustainability: Local Concerns, Global Challenges. For more information about the conference, visit www.aspanet.org.

Assistant Professor Jacob Fowles is one of twelve scholars chosen from a national pool to participate in the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) and the Lumina Foundation Academic Fellows Program. This prestigious selection allows Dr. Fowles a unique opportunity to influence the national postsecondary education agenda by evaluating critical research to elevate the current policy discourse in Washington, D.C.

Associate Professor Holly Goerdel was awarded a research sabbatical for the fall 2012 semester. She is working on a book-length project on the lessons of wartime contracting for public managers.

Summer 2012

Recent MPA program graduate BRIAN HANDSHY (2012) has been named a 2012 Presidential Management Fellow. Fewer than one percent of applicants are selected to take part in this prestigious program, which matches outstanding graduate students with federal leadership opportunities and employment. Click here to read the full article regarding Brian's accomplishment.

Back in April we celebrated Dr. George Frederickson with a "Festschrift,", a conference that brought together academicians to reflect on his contribution to the field of public administration. The day ended with a wonderful banquet attended by George's family, colleagues, former students and academic colleagues. All those who know him won't be surprised to hear that George managed to find a fabulous and humorous way to honor his guests--attendees received a George Frederickson bobblehead! In mid-May Ray Hummert traveled to San Antonio and brought his bobblehead along for the trip. This shot shows George enjoying the San Antonio nightlife. We've received many requests from alumni who'd like to acquire a George of their own, but, alas, these were a limited edition.

Spring 2012

School Director Marilu Goodyear will be chairing a National Academy of Public Administration panel to review the U.S. Government Printing Office. The review will update past studies of GPO operations and will offer recommendations for additional cost-savings opportunities.

Many of the School's faculty and staff attended the 2012Transforming Local Government Conference in Kansas City. On Tuesday, April 17 we presented a pre-conference together with our partner CH2M Hill focused on building collaborative relationships across organizations. We then spent the rest of the week attending sessions on innovative programs happening local governments across the US and connecting with the dozens of KUCIMATs in attendance. On Wednesday evening the TLG program included a speakeasy event in the exhibit hall complete with some flappers and gangsters in attendance. Those who know our graduates will not be surprised to learn that several were among those in costume adding to the authentic feel. At right, soon-to-be grad Justin Pregont and John Nalbandian pause for a photo shoot with KUCIMAT flappers Melissa Mundt and Danielle Dulin.

Dr. George Frederickson was honored with a conference and banquet on April 13th. The occasion gave colleagues, friends and family members a chance to reflect on the many contributions he's made academically and personally over the years as his retirement approaches in December 2012. The Lawrence Journal World ran this story on George as part of the "16 Things I've Done" series that features KU faculty and staff.

Dr. Marilu Goodyear has been recognized with the 2012 Kathleen McCluskey Fawcett Woman Mentoring Women Award! This award is given each year by the KU Emily Taylor Women's Resource Center to a woman student, staff or faculty member who has demonstrated outstanding commitment to the supporting and mentoring of women at the University of Kansas. Women staff and faculty in SPAA joined together with staff who have worked with Marilu in other departments at KU to nominate her, noting that "in her 16 years at KU, Marilu has held leadership roles in the KU Libraries, in Information Technology and in Public Administration. In each of these roles she has worked to reach out to the women working around her and share her knowledge and insights in ways that help others grow skills and identify opportunities for their personal and professional development." Congratulations, Marilu--and thank you!

Marilu with Kathleen McCluskey Fawcett whose contributions to mentoring KU women were honored with the creation of this award.

Professor John Nalbandian is one of 16 men who were selected for KU’s 2012 Men of Merit poster. The project recognizes men at the University who positively define masculinity through challenging norms, taking action and leading by example while making contributions to the University and/or the community. This is the fourth year of the project, which aims to increase awareness of the importance of education and involvement in men’s lives, inspire campus men to take an active role in their college experience and provide role models and mentors for men to be successful. The Masculinities Symposium and the Men of Merit poster are projects of the KU Emily Taylor Women's Resource Center. It's exciting to have Marilu and John honored in the same year by the Center for their contributions to the KU community. Congratulations!

We're #1! The US News and World Report has just released their ranking results for Best Graduate Schools. The SPAA is ranked #1 again as the top graduate school for City Management and Urban Policy (click here to see the list) and jumped forward two spots in Public Management Administration to rank as #5 (click here for that list).

Our March, 2012 newsletter is hot off the (virtual) press! Check it out to find out about upcoming SPAA events, to learn about a new student-created resource to benefit both current and prospective students, faculty achievements and research, and so much more. Let us know what you think of the new look and if there are features you'd like to see in the next issue.

MPA student Brian Handshy has been selected as a 2012 Presidential Management Fellow! The highly competitive program offers Fellows a path into leadership roles in the federal government along with professional development support to support the setting and reaching of career goals. Brian's background include service in a variety of roles in the U.S. Navy, and since August 2011 he has been part of the Kansas Governor's Executive Fellowship Program. Congratulations, Brian!

On February 9-11, the School welcomed a dozen visitors to campus from the Executive Leadership Institute (ELI) sponsored by the National Forum for Black Public Administrators (www.nfbpa.org). The Institute is conducted by NFBPA in cooperation with several universities where the participants spend 3-5 days, one university per month. KU has been part of ELI for the past six years.

Are you new to a supervisory role or feeling like your supervisory skills need some fine-tuning? Our 3-day class, The Heart of True Leadership: Supervisory Training for the Public Workforce, can support your efforts or those of new supervisors on your team. The class will be offered June 19-21in Topeka and September 18-20 in Overland Park. Follow this link to learn more.

This spring the School of Public Affairs and Administration co-hosted the Transforming Local Government (TLG) Conference, put on by the Alliance for Innovation. It took place in Kansas City, Missouri on April 18-20. Additionally, there was a free, one-day pre-conference on April 17, focusing on public-private collaboration and co-sponsored by the School and CH2M Hill. The TLG conference served as the Kansas and Missouri city/county management conference for 2012.

Fall 2011
Professor John Nalbandian and Noel Rasor, Assistant Director of the Public Management Center, spent November 13-15 in Bentonville, Arkansas with cohort 3 of America's Leaders of Change (ALOC). ALOC is a program of the National Urban Fellows, with KU serving as the academic partner. ALOC is an executive leadership program that brings together about 50 accomplished participants from underrepresented groups to engage in personal and professional development, develop enriched knowledge of public service leadership and enhance capacity for life-long coaching and networking. John presented on "Values, Politics and Administration" as part of this first group meeting, and other KU faculty will present to the group in 2012. The meeting took place in Bentonville because Wal-Mart serves as the leading sponsor, so the trip also included a fascinating tour of the Wal-Mart headquarters and a trip to the stunning Crystal Bridges Museum.

Summer, 2011

We are excited to announce that we have established a partnership with CH2M Hill, one of the nation’s leading providers of governmental services, to focus on three areas of mutual interest: educating emerging local government leaders in new strategies for service delivery; developing leaders and collaborative capacity in local government organizations; and conducting research on excellence in public-private collaboration. Click here to read more about this partnership.

Holly T. Goerdel, associate professor of public administration, has been named assistant managing editor of the Journal of Homeland Security & Emergency Management. The journal is published by Berkeley University Press and provides information and insights on homeland security and emergency management by featuring contributions from authors with essential knowledge and experience in a broad array of professions, including emergency management, engineering; political science/public administration/policy analysis, decision science, and health and medicine. Congratulations, Holly!

We are thrilled to announce that Rosemary O’Leary will be joining our faculty in the 2013 Spring semester as the Edwin O. Stene Distinguished Professor of Public Administration! In 2007, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences honored O’Leary with its Alumni Distinguished Achievement Award. She holds bachelor’s, law and master’s in public administration degrees from KU, as well as a doctorate from the Maxwell School of Syracuse University.

We're now enrolling for our next Emerging Leaders Academy! This professional development program, offered through the Public Management Center, is targeted to promising, non-managerial staff to help them prepare for positions of greater responsibility. The next class will be held in Lawrence starting in early September, with participants meeting twice per month through January. ELA is a succession planning initiative designed to complement and support your in-house programs to make sure you have skilled people in the pipeline to carry on your organization's work as baby boomers retire. The work we do in the public sector is too important not to plan for tomorrow's leadership. Learn more about ELA at www.kupmc.org/programs/ela.

Interested in a public service career but not sure what path to take? Members of the 2011 MPA graduating class have created a series of videos to help you learn about city management. They interviewed practicing city managers while attending the ICMA conference last fall and asked them to reflect on their experiences in the profession. The series of videos they created is available on a new "What is city management?" page in the Career Resources area of our site. Thanks to Matt Monedero, Justin Pregont, and Paul Lampe for their efforts!

Another summer means we've welcomed another group of City & County Leadership intern-option students to campus while the second year intern-option group has scattered across the region and country for their full-time internships. We'll have information up on the website soon about the incoming class, but meanwhile click here to see where the second-years have landed for their positions.

Welcome to the new University of Kansas School of Public Affairs and Administration! As of July 1, the department has become a School within the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences. This change was a recommendation of our external review in 2008 and, after much careful planning and with the support of the Provost and Kansas Board of Regents, we are now a School. Overall the change won't have too many effects on day-to-day operations, but will greatly enhance our ability to remain competitive as a top program in public affairs. Read more about this change at http://www.news.ku.edu/2011/july/1/schoolofpublicaffairsandadmin.shtml.

The Department was well-represented by both faculty and doctoral students at the June 2-4 Public Management Research Association conference held at the Maxwell School in Syracuse.

• Student Erin Borry presented her paper, "Ethical Climate in the Public Sector: Its Influence on Red Tape and Rule Bending."
• Student Cullen C. Merritt presented a poster at the Doctoral Poster Session on his work entitled "Predicting Executive Turnover in Public Organizations."
• Dr. Leisha Dehart-Davis presented her paper, "Rule Formalization and Rule Effectiveness: Further Explorations into the Construct Validity of Red Tape."
• Dr. Heather Getha-Taylor presenter on her current work with Ricardo S. Morse, University of North Carolina, "Leadership Development for Local Government Executives: Balancing Existing Commitments and Emerging Needs."
• Dr. Holly Goerdel presented her paper, "Democratic Rollback and Contracting for War: Managing the Intent of Accountability with Technical versus Adaptive Solutions."
• Dr. Barbara Romzek presented on her current work Kelly LeRoux, University of Illinois-Chicago and Joycelyn Johnson, American University, "Informal Accountability Dynamics within Service Delivery Networks: A Theory and a Test."
• Dr. Chris Silvia presented on his current work with Michael McGuire and Robert Agranoff of Indiana University, "Putting the "Public" Back into Collaborative Public Management."

Spring 2011
The KU Department of Public Administration has joined the Alliance for Innovation, an international network of progressive governments and partners committed to transforming local government by accelerating the development and dissemination of innovative practices. The Department is the first university affiliate of the alliance. The organization is a partnership of the International City/County Management Association (ICMA), the Arizona State University School of Public Affairs, and the former Innovation Groups. Click here to read more.

1996 MPA alumnus Bob Lowry, who serves as the Director of Public Works and Transportation in Arlington, Texas, recently endowed a scholarship for MPA students. Bob notes, “My KU experience opened doors for me that I never dreamed about. And the friends I made will be there for the rest of my life. I have been blessed by many educational and employment opportunities throughout my life and I hope that in some small way, our gift may open some doors for others like the MPA program did for me.” We thank you, Bob, for your support. To join Bob in supporting the Department with your gift, visit http://www.kupa.ku.edu/donate/index.shtml.

Congratulations to doctoral student Randy Davis who has successfully defended his dissertation, "Collective Bargaining in Municipal Government: How Unionization Impacts Employee's Attitudes, Behaviors, and Values," with honors. After graduating this spring Randy will be heading to Oxford, Ohio for an assistant professor position with Miami University of Ohio. Hooray, Randy!

John Nalbandian honored: In recognition of John Nalbandian’s lifelong contributions to local government management education, The Senior Executive Institute at the University of Virgina—a preeminent executive development program targeted to local government managers—is offering 2-3 partial scholarships (15% of tuition; present value $750) to its nationally recognized annual two week session the last two weeks of July in Charlottesville, and 2-3partial scholarships (15% of tuition; present value $450) to its one week LEAD program which is offered four times a year.  These scholarships, to be offered annually, are targeted to KU alumni and graduates of the Executive Leadership Institute sponsored by the National Forum for Black Public Administrators.  John and Carol Nalbandian have been instrumental in hosting ELI at KU for nearly a decade. SEI is targeted at city managers and experienced assistants and LEAD is aimed at assistants and department heads.  If interested, contact Molly Harlow, SEI coordinator, mjh3a@virginia.edu or Carmie Rodriguez, LEAD coordinator, carmie@virginia.edu.

Current Faculty Research: When disaster strikes, collaboration is key. As we have watched the news from Japan these last few weeks, our hearts have gone out to those affected. We are also are clearly reminded of our professional obligations to do our part in preparing for such events in our backyards. A recent article published by Public Administration faculty member Chris Silvia is directly relevant to this need. Since such disasters cross jurisdictional boundaries, collaboration is key. Click here to read more about Chris's research via our blog.

The current on-campus MPA intern students have created a video on the reasons why KU was their choice. Check it out at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tDNvYsJO3Y. They are also blogging about their year on campus. Click here to visit the blog and read about their travels, their learning and their advice for the class of 2013.

This year's KCCM conference features a special pre-conference event, "Inspiring Women: Celebrating Women's Contributions to Public Administration," on April 20th from 1:00-4:00pm with a reception to follow. Keynote speakers include Camilla Stivers, the top researcher on gender issues in public administration, and Patricia Martel, City Manager of Daly City, CA and ICMA board member. Click here to learn more about the pre-conference program.

The 63rd Annual Kansas City & County Management Conference is coming up on April 21-22. This year's theme is "Storied Past, Challenging Future," and the program will feature sessions on KPERS and on city management as a family profession, with several parent/children pairs reflecting on their experiences working in the field. Click here to go to the conference website for the complete program and registration information.

Good reading: Faculty member Holly Goerdel and PhD graduate Edward Stacyk (now on the faculty at American University) investigate the benefits of bureaucracy in a 2010 article published in the Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory. They argue that hierarchy helps insulate staff from issues related to waning political support and increasing goal ambiguity, helping to maintain organizational effectiveness and performance. Click here to visit the journal's website.

Doctoral student Randy Davis has a forthcoming article in The American Review of Public Administration. Titled "Blue-Collar Public Servants: How Union Membership Influences Public Service Motivation," the article is currently available for preview at http://arp.sagepub.com/content/early/recent. Scroll down to the December listings to find Randy's article.

On behalf of the Department, John and Carol Nalbandian hosted a 2.5 day Executive Leadership Institute for the National Forum for Black Public Administrators. Faculty member Heather Getha-Taylor was also involved as was Department Chair Marilu Goodyear.

Winter 2011

The Public Management Center has launched "CPM with Distinction" for graduates of the Certified Public Manager program to encourage and support continuing professional education among CPM alumni. Learn more about the new opportunity at http://www.kupmc.org/~kupmc/programs/cpm/distinction.shtml.

Check out the latest edition of the Department's newsletter by visiting http://www.kupa.ku.edu/alumni/news/. This issue includes a great overview of current areas of faculty research and some thoughts from Chair Marilu Goodyear about the ways the Department works to bridge the worlds of the university, the discipline, and the profession.

Congratulations to Professor Chuck Epp, whose most recent book, Making Rights Real: Activists, Bureaucrats, and the Creation of the Legalistic State, has been named an outstanding academic title for 2010 by Choice, the premier source for reviews of academic books, electronic media, and Internet resources of interest to those in higher education.

Ben Bryant, a second year KU MPA student working for the cites of Tualatin and Wilsonville Oregon, was recently featured in an article about his work to help chart the future of the Basalt Creek Planning Area on OregonLive.com. Read the full article here.

Fall 2010

Congratulations to Professor George Frederickson, who is the 2010 recipient of the George Graham Award for Exceptional Service to the National Academy of Public Administration!  George Graham was the National Academy's first president and this award "recognizes those Fellows who have made a sustained and extraordinary contribution toward the Academy becoming a stronger and more respected organization."  

Congratulations to our Administrative Director (and MPA Advisor Extraordinaire) Ray Hummert who was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the KUCIMATs (MPA alumni) at the Department's banquet at the ICMA annual meeting in October. As the award announcement highlighted, his years as a city administrator, together with his role helping students transition from undergraduate to graduate student to KUICMAT, has distinguished Ray's career. He works tirelessly and is profoundly dedicated to continuing the tradition of the program. Yay, Ray!

The Department's professional development arm, the KU Public Management Center, has been selected as the university partner for the National Urban Fellows, a leadership development organization founded to counter the under-representation of people of color and women in leadership positions in the public and nonprofit sectors. Faculty members Charles Jones and John Nalbandian will work with the Fellows throughout the 2010-2011 academic year.

Summer 2010

Congratulations to Tony Reams, Public Administration PhD Student, who has received the Myron D. Calkins Scholarship from the Kansas City Metro Chapter of the American Public Works Association!

The KU MPA Program got a mention in the July 25 New York Times Education section in a brief "what's an MPA" piece that also highlighted the programs at Syracuse, NYU and Harvard. And it's worth noting that KU PA chair Marilu Goodyear was the only person quoted!

John Martinez, a KU Public Administration graduate, was featured in the Summer 2010 edition of the KU Edwards Campus' Higher Ed newsletter. Martinez now works at Children’s International, a KC based non-profit. Click here to read the full article.

Dr. Alfred Tat-Kei Ho, who is joining the KU Department of Public Administration this fall, was honored by the City of Indianapolis for his contributions to Indiana University- Purdue University Indianapolis School of Public & Environmental Affairs and to the Mayor’s Office. June 17th, 2010 was declared Dr. Alfred Ho Day in the City of Indianapolis by Mayor Gregory Ballard. Click here to see the proclamation.

Professors Marilu Goodyear and Holly Goerdel, with KU PhD graduate Shannon Portillo and current KU PhD student Linda Williams, recently published Cybersecurity Management in the States: The Emerging Role of Chief Information Security Officers a report from the IBM Center for the Business of Government. You can access the report online here, or download a PDF of the report here.

Cycling enthusiasts Matt Allen, John Nalbandian and Ray Hummert decided 2010 was the year to enter Bike Across Kansas, an eight-day 475 miles journey from the Kansas/Colorado border to the Kansas/Missouri boarder. A journey like this needed a jersey to commemorate the moment.   So Matt Allen with the assistance of Inkt in Garden City designed a jersey.  A collection of KUCIMATS and Certified Public Managers from the KU Public Management Center were also entrants or veterans of the event, so the idea of the KU Public Administration jersey was born! Click here for more information about the jersey and the order form.

Spring 2010

Still more congratulations, this time to Associate Professor Leisha Dehart-Davis, who is this year's recipient of the John C. Wright mentoring award from the KU Office of Graduate Studies. The nomination was made by the doctoral students in the Department of Public Administration.

Congratulations to Raymond Lee, III who was awarded the University of Kansas Black Faculty and Staff Council Student Achievement Award! Ray is the class president of the 2011 intern-option MPA students and was honored at the organization's 17th Annual Banquet on Friday, April 16.

Professor John Nalbandian received the 2010 Charles H. Levine Award for research, teaching, and service. The award is given jointly by the American Society for Public Administration and the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration at the national ASPA conference in San Jose, California in April.

Diana Koslowsky was selected as the University Support Staff Employee of the Month for March. Diana oversees the smooth functioning of most of the day-to-day activities in the Public Administration Department office and helps keep the rest of us on track and sane, not a small task! Read more.

The KU Public Management Center (PMC) has launched a blog! Housed in the Department of Public Administration, the PMC offers professional development training to prepare leaders, develop professionalism in the public workforce, and link KU resources to the challenges of public management throughout the state of Kansas. The blog is a new way for the PMC to work toward its mission by offering resources to support the work of public sector professionals. Updated at least three times a week, the blog features links to helpful management and leadership resources across the web, lists training and professional development opportunities, and will be a new way to highlight the research of KU Public Administration faculty and the achievements of program graduates. Click here to visit the PMC's website and the blog.

Time is running out: register now for the KU City & County Management Conference and join us in Lawrence on April 22 & 23 for "Governance, Collaboration, and Leadership: Working Together in a New Decade." Click here for schedule and registration information.

Winter 2010

Alfred Tat-Kei Ho has been appointed Associate Professor of Public Administration and will join the faculty in fall 2010.   His current research focuses primarily on performance budgeting and management, citizen engagement in performance measurement, and e-government practices.  He has advised numerous local governments in the U.S. and in China on performance management reforms, and has been a special advisor to the Indianapolis Mayor’s Office on the City’s performance management initiatives since 2009.  Dr. Ho has published in numerous professional outlets, including Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, Public Administration Review, and Public Budgeting and Finance.  He received his Master of Public Administration and Ph.D. from the School of Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA), Indiana University, Bloomington. 

Jacob Fowles has been appointed Assistant Professor of Public Administration and will join the faculty in fall 2010. Fowles is completing his doctoral degree at the James W. Martin School of Public Policy and Administration at the University of Kentucky. His current research projects largely revolve around education finance, including his dissertation which looks at state management of public higher education as well as a project funded by the Spencer Foundation that is evaluating the impact of Kentucky's K-12 education finance reform on teacher quality in the rural areas of the state. More broadly, Jacob's research explores the interrelationship between finance, politics, and public policy. Jacob has held graduate fellowships with the Kentucky Legislative Research Commission and the State Higher Education Executive Officers (SHEEO).

The 62nd Annual Kansas City County Management Conference, "Governance, Collaboration and Leadership", will be held April 22-23 in Lawrence. Among the featured speakers will be David Warm, Executive Director of the Mid-America Regional Council. Click here for registration information.

Redmond Jones II, KU MPA grad and Affirmative Action Director for the City of Davenport, Iowa, was awarded the 2010 Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Achievement Award for outstanding leadership and vision from the Iowa Commission on the Status of African Americans. The award recognizes his work with the Davenport Disparity Study which reviewed city contracts to assess the percentage that were awarded to minority- and women-owned businesses. Read the story in the Quad City Times.

Associate Professor Leisha Dehart-Davis's work on "Green Tape Theory" was highlighted in Governing Magazine's January 2010 monthly newsletter.

Heather Getha-Taylor has been appointed Assistant Professor of Public Administration and will join the faculty in fall 2010.  Prior to coming to KU, she was an assistant professor at the University of South Carolina.  Her research and teaching efforts have centered on public and nonprofit management, with special emphasis on human resource management, organizational behavior, collaborative governance, and executive leadership.  She has a Ph.D. in Public Administration from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University in 2007 with concentrations in Human Resource Management and Organization Theory.  

Chris Silvia has been appointed Assistant Professor of Public Administration and will join the faculty in fall 2010.  He is completing his doctoral degree in Public Affairs at the School of Public and Environmental Affairs  at Indiana University. His academic work examines the managerial and leadership behaviors exhibited by leaders in collaborative networks.  In addition to focusing on leadership and managerial behavior, his broader research agenda includes work in the areas of networks and collaboration and volunteer management.  Prior to working on his doctorate, Silvia was a Hospital Administrator and worked in risk management.

Fall 2009

Leisha DeHart-Davis, Associate Professor of Public Administration recently received the Kemper Fellowship for Teaching Excellence in fall 2009. DeHart-Davis’ caring attitude toward students and high standards of performance demonstrate her teaching excellence. She instructs public administration classes to all levels of students, from undergraduate to doctoral, and has an enthusiasm that inspires. To read the full article, or to watch a video of the award being presented, click here.

Megan Dodge and Philip Rodriguez, two recent KU MPA graduates, are featured in an article about their work with the City of San Antonio.

Lori Hirons, KU MPA graduate 1996, was featured in the KU Edwards Campus Higher Education Summer 09 newsletter in an article about her career and transition from Roeland Park to New York City. Click here for the full story.

"In the News" archives