Faculty Contact Information:
Dr. JED Riggs
PSC 9 Box 3018
APO AE 09123
EMAIL: jriggs@faculty.ed.umuc.edu | |
Consultation:
| One-Half Hour Before Class, And By Apppointment. | |
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:
| All 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 | |
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 | |
Grading Information:
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
Complete a mid-term and final examination;
and a 15-20 page theme paper. | |
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, the requirements are:
A Mid-Term Examination----30%
A Final Examination-------40%
A Research Paper----------30% | |
Description of Course Requirements:
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.
Write graduate level papers or case studies: You are required to conduct professional-level research, including appropriately citing works of others and avoiding plagiarism.
Orally/visually present prepared material: You are required to present your research in a professional manner. In a face-to-face course, this typically means an oral presentation accompanied by appropriate visual material. In a DE class, this means creating a visual/textual presentation for your instructor and classmates.
Complete one or more written examination(s): 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.
Specifically, in this course, you will be graded by a mid-term exam, which will fall on the Sunday afternoon of the second weekend, and will consist of all readings and lectures from the start of the class, through the second Saturday. You will also have a final examination, which will fall on the Sunday of Weekend four, and will consist of all readings and lectures from the Sunday of the second weekend onwards.
In addition each student will write a 15-20 page research paper on a current policy area of Public Administration. Since this is a survey course, the possibility of topics is virtually endless. By the day of the mid-term exam, I expect to see from each student a short topic sheet which will contain three things:
1. the actual topic to be researched (eg..The impact of lotteries on
state finances).
2. The Approach. (eg...A case study of the lottery in New York).
3. A sample bibliography of the sources to be used.
The paper is to be written in the APA format, and must be in my hands by the day of the final exam. Failure to turn in work on time will result in an automatic 15% reduction in the paper's value. | |
Course Schedule:
This schedule presents 16 units or modules, with each unit corresponding to a regular three-hour weekday meeting, a half-day on weekends, or a full week of DE.
WEEKEND ONE:
1. The History of the Federal Sytem. Denhardt; 1-3
Stillman; 1-1,2-2,5.
2. The Structure of the Federal System.
3. Intergovernmental Relations & Politics.
4. Public Policy Analysis.
WEEKEND TWO:
1. Public Budgeting. Denhardt; 5.
(Congressional Perspective) Stillman; 8, 12, 13.
2. Public Budgeting.
(Presidential Perspective).
3. Expenditure Analysis.
4. MID-TERM EXAMINATION.
WEEKEND THREE:
1. Organization Theory. Denhardt; 6, 8.
(Classical Theory).
2. Organization Theory.
(Modern Theory).
3. The Process of Job Design.
4. Same Topic.
WEEKEND FOUR:
1. Development of Labor Law. NO READINGS.
2. Employee Relations.
3. Technology and Government, Class critiques.
4. FINAL EXAMINATION. | |
Academic Policies:
Please refer 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. JED Riggs is Collegiate Professor in the University of Maryland University College-Europe/Bowie State System, and has been teaching for Maryland since 1994. | |