Faculty Contact Information:
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Kathy Boyd
UMUC-Europe Graduate Programs
Unit 29216
APO AE 09102
DSN: 370-6762
Civilian: +49-6221-378-262 | |
Consultation:
| Available via email and by telephone as needed. | |
Required Texts and Readings:
Texts used exclusively in this course:
Denhardt, R.B. & Grubbs, J.W. (2003) Public administration: An action orientation (4th ed.). Belmont, CA : Thomson Wadsworth.
Stillman, R.J. (2000). Public administration: Concepts and cases (7th ed.). Houghton Miflin.
Text used in multiple courses:
American Psychological Association. (2001). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.). Washington D.C.: Author. | |
Supplementary Readings:
| Each instructor has his or her preferences for supplementary reading material that may be added here. In addition, all graduate students should be prepared to utilize the UMUC online library. The library contains a large number of full text academic journals that are free of charge and immediately available. The library homepage also contains a number of links related to improving students' research and writing skills. | |
Recommended Journals:
| A variety of full-text, online, free-of-charge and pay-per-view academic journals are listed on the PA Webboard (http://webboard.ed.umuc.edu/~pa). Public Administration Review, the lead journal in the discipline,is especially useful for this course. | |
Course Description:
| Prerequisite: Undergraduate American political science or American Government or permission from the Program Director. A survey of the fundamentals of public administration, management strategies and management techniques at the national, state, and local levels. | |
Course Goals:
As the introductory course in the M.P.A. program and a prerequisite to the certificate in E-Government, this course introduces and analyzes:
- Discipline and practice of American public administration.
- Role of government in general and public administrators in particular in a democratic society.
- Basic institutions of American government.
- Development of the administrative state.
- Component partsof public administration.
- Current standards and best practices in public sector management.
- Major theories, models, and concepts of public administration
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Course Objectives:
At the conclusion of the course, students will be able to:
- Analyze case material, web sites, public law, and research articles related to public administration
- Investigate the relationship between historical and current issues in public administration
- Utilize electronic resources to find primary source documents, data, statements on best practices, and research articles related to issues in public administration
- Develop and present written and oral arguments, case studies, and/or research papers on current issues in public administration that make reference to and build on factual and expert information
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Grading Information:
Grades for this course will be assigned as follows:
A 90%
B 80 – 89%
C 70 – 79%
F Below 70%
Please note that Bowie State University does not use "D" for graduate students. The grade F(a) is used to designate academic failure. F(n) is used to designate failure for non-completion. Grades of Incomplete or Withdrawal are governed by UMUC-Europe policies. For further details, please refer to the UMUC-Europe Graduate Catalog. Hard copies of the catalog are available in your local Education Center | |
Course Requirements:
Graduate school at the masters level focuses on helping students obtain the education needed for success as professionals in their chosen fields. Thus, UMUC-Europe Graduate Programs and Bowie State University share the common goals of promoting excellence in academic scholarship through thoughtful inquiry and the skillful application of knowledge and theory for the betterment of society.
In order to maximize your graduate educational experience in general and this course in particular, you are required to:
Participate in classroom discussions 15%
Present and analyze a case study 15%
Present and critique a scholarly article 15%
Develop and present a research paper 30%
Complete a midterm examination 25% | |
Description of Course Requirements:
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Successful graduate students in American universities dedicate approximately three hours of preparation/study time for every hour spent in the face-to-face classroom. Thus, the following course requirements were developed on the assumption that students would be prepared to spend approximately 150 hours of their own time working on them. In an 8-week term, that is the equivalent of a half-time job. Most 14-week graduate distance education courses require at least 10 hours per week of dedicated time, plus time spent in the virtual classroom.
Participate in classroom discussions: You are expected to come to class prepared to engage in all discussions in a professional and informed manner.
Present and analyze a case study: You will write a 3-5 page case analysis and present your observations to the class during the course of classroom discussions. The written analysis will count as 80% of the grade for the assignment. The assignments of specific cases to specific students and details on how to write the analysis will be handed out during the first week of class. All written case analyses, regardless of the module they are presented in, are due on September 27.
Present and critique a scholarly article: You will write a 3-5-page critique of a scholarly article and present your observations to the class during the course of classroom discussions. The written critique will count as 80% of the grade for the assignment. Details on how to write the critique will be handed out during the first week of class. All written critiques, regardless of the module they are presented in, are due on October 25.
Develop and present a research paper: You will conduct scholarly research on a subject related to the future of American Public Administration and write a paper adhering to specific guidelines. Details on choosing a topic and conducting the research will be discussed during the first week of class. All final drafts of research papers are due on December 3.
You are required to conduct professional-level research, including appropriately citing works of others and avoiding plagiarism. Resubmission of course work from previous classes (whether or not taken at UMUC, UMUC-Europe or BSU), partially or in its entirety, is not acceptable in this course and will result in an automatic failure on the assignment.
Complete a midterm examination: The examination process in this class will assist you in developing the writing and critical thinking skills necessary to successfully passing the comprehensive exam required of all graduate students. The questions used for this course will either be taken directly from past comprehensive exams or written as though to be included on a comprehensive exam. The exam will be administered Oct 9 - Oct 15. | |
Course Schedule:
August 30 - September 19
Module 1:Introduction and Political Issues
- Denhardt: Chapters 1-3
- Stillman: Chapters 1-5
- supplementary readings
September 20 - October 8
Module 2: Managerial Issues
- Denhardt: Chapters 4-7
- Stillman: Chapters 8, 11-13, 16
- supplementary readings
MIDTERM EXAM: October 9 - October 15
BREAK: October 16 - October 24
October 25 - November 22
Module 3: Organizational Issues
- Denhardt: Chapters 8-11
- Stillman: Chapters 6, 9 & 10
- supplementary readings
November 23 - December 10
Module 4: Future Issues and Presentations
- Denhardt: Chapter 12
- Stillman: Chapter 14-15
- supplementary readings
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Academic Policies:
The University has a license agreement with Turnitin.com, a service that helps prevent plagiarism from internet resources. I may be using this service in this class by either requiring students to submit their papers electronically to Turnitin.com or by submitting questionable text on behalf of a student. If you or I submit part or all of your paper, it will be stored by Turnitin.com in their database throughout the term of the University's contract with Turnitin.com. If you object to this temporary storage of your paper, you must let me know no later than two weeks after the start of this class. Please Note: If you object to the storage of your paper on Turnitin.com, I may utilize other services to check your work for plagiarism.
The official university policy on Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty can be found at http://www.umuc.edu/policy/aa15025.shtml. Section I.C. states: Faculty may determine if the resubmission of course work from previous classes (whether or not taken at UMUC), partially or in its entirety, is acceptable when assigning a grade on that piece of course work. Faculty must provide this information in their written syllabi. If the resubmission of course work is deemed to be unacceptable, a charge may not be brought under this Policy and will be handled as indicated in the written syllabi.
Please refer to Description of Course Requirements for specific information on how resubmissions will be treated in this course and to the UMUC-Europe Graduate Catalog for information on the following:
Academic Integrity
Course Load
Exception to Policy
Grade Appeal Process
Make-up Examinations
Nondiscrimination
Students with Disabilities
Hard copies of the catalog are available at your local Education Center. | |
Faculty Bio:
Dr. Kathy Boyd, MPA Program Director, has worked for UMUC Europe since August 2000. Originally from Wyoming, Kathy took both her Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) and her Master of Public Administration (MPA) from the University of Wyoming. She served as an Intern in the Wyoming State Office of Community Programs and in the Town of Jackson, Wyoming. She took her Doctor of Public Administration (DPA)at Arizona State University. During her doctoral program she served as a Research Associate in the ASU Office of the President and the Arizona Office of the Governor before returning to campus and working exclusively for a past comptroller of the Army, Lt. General (Retired) Frank J. Sackton with whom she co-taught Public Budgeting.
Dr. Boyd worked for the University of Colorado-Denver Graduate School of Public Affairs prior to joining UMUC-Europe. She lives in the Heidelberg area and visits France regularly with her husband, Michel Rochedieu. She is a life-time member of the American Society for Public Administration and actively encourages students to join ASPA. | |