PPA Public Interest

From Interim Dean Giacomazzi:

Public Policy & Administration

With so much of our work being virtual, you, like me, may be missing the social interaction with co-workers and friends. On the Boise State campus, we especially look forward to the day when our face-to-face interactions with our students increase.

But our work goes on these days, just in different ways. The events of this past year have shown how important our work – and the work we’re preparing our students to do – truly is. In this issue of Public Interest, we’ll spotlight our Public Policy and Administration program. We’ll introduce you to two of our current students who are already working in their fields and we’ll chat with a couple of our dedicated faculty members.

And we’ll introduce you to five of our graduate certificates, three of which are new. And here’s a shameless plug–if you’re working in public service – or if you have a desire to – one of our certificates may be right for you and your career. We invite you to learn more about these programs (many of you have even graduated from them over the years)

As we exit an especially contentious election season, it is good to be reminded that so much of the important work of public policy is not done by politicians, celebrities or television talking heads. Rather, the administration of public policy is done by hard-working and thoughtful individuals such as our students past and present – who improve the quality of all of our lives by improving our public policy. Public servants working in the public interest.

Please stay safe and healthy.

Andrew Giacomazzi
Interim Dean, School of Public Service
Boise State University

SPS Interim Dean Andrew Giacomazzi interviews Luke Fowler

Academics talking academics in elevators

In an exciting new edition of Academics Talking Academics in (Virtual) Elevators, School of Public Service Interim Dean Andrew Giacomazzi interviews Luke Fowler, Director of our MPA Program. They discuss:

What makes Boise State such a good place to study Public Policy and Administration?
New graduate certificates in Public Policy and Administration.
Can working professionals complete a graduate certificate completely online?
Big Tent Radio. Is it a circus or what?
Which SEC college football coach would make the best public administrator?

PPA Now Offers Five Graduate Certificates

With the addition of three new certificates, the Public Policy and Administration Program now offers five graduate-level certificates. Many of the courses required are online, so this is a great opportunity for working professionals to enhance their professional skills.

Our Graduate Certificate in Nonprofit Administration draws upon interdisciplinary coursework to assist working professionals and students hone management and leadership skills and policy development expertise.
Our Certificate in Applied Public Administration is fully online, with 1-credit hour courses offered in a 5-week format. The Certificate in Applied Public Administration assists working professionals and students with an applied, skills-based approach to hone their management and leadership skills and policy development expertise in the unique environment facing public service organizations across public, private, and non-profit sectors.
Our new Graduate Certificate in Environmental Governance assists working professionals and students with additional training and coursework to further develop their expertise and skills within the context of the unique challenges that emerge for public, private, and non-profit sectors in governing the environment.
Our new Graduate Certificate in State, Local, and Regional Governance assists working professionals and students with additional training and coursework to further develop their expertise and skills within the context of the unique governance challenges that emerge for public, private, and non-profit sectors at state-, local-, and regional-levels.
Our new Graduate Certificate in Policy Research assists working professional and students with additional training and coursework to further develop their expertise and skills for research within the context of public policy formulation, analysis, and evaluation.

Check Out Our Graduate Certificates

Blue Review: Five Questions with Monica Hubbard

In a recent article in Blue Review, Monica Hubbard of our Public Policy and Administration program discussed Contaminants of Emerging Concerns (CECs). CECs are “basically natural or man-made micro-pollutants that we, as a society, have not tracked or managed in the past, but have known negative ecological or human health impacts. Examples include Teflon and pharmaceutical drugs, which have been found in streams, lakes, oceans, snow, and even the polar ice caps.”

Read "Five Questions with Monica Hubbard"

Public Interest interviews Public Policy & Administration PhD Student

PhD Student Spotlight - Lantz McGinnis-Brown

Why did you decide to study Public Policy and Administration at Boise State?

As an undergraduate student here at Boise State, I got the opportunity to talk to Dr. Hill and Dr. Fredericksen about the Master of Public Administration program, and their advice encouraged me to apply to that program, and the graduate research assistant program. Through the graduate research assistant program, I got to work at the Idaho Policy Institute, which led to my current job with IPI. The support I got through my job and the relationships I built in the MPA program encouraged me to apply for the PhD in Public Policy and Administration program, which I’m currently in.

What makes Boise State a good place to study Public Policy and Administration?

Right from the beginning, since entering into the MPA program, I’ve gotten the opportunity to work on interesting, hands-on projects through my classes and my research assistantship/job. The faculty and students in the MPA and PhD programs also have a broad array of interests and projects that they are working on, which provides plenty of chances to learn new approaches and expand one’s horizons. Most importantly, it’s a supportive community – there is always another PhD student to talk about writing struggles with, or a professor willing to provide additional perspective on a challenging question.

What are the most important things you’ve learned in the program so far?

Ask lots of questions, and then ask questions about your questions. Every question, and every answer, has assumptions behind it. Don’t be afraid to let your assumptions be wrong. In addition, a second perspective is always valuable – graduate research does not need to be a solitary experience. And valuable information can come from anywhere – always look for new perspectives and opportunities to apply them to your own work. Finally, make regular time for writing and reading.

How have you been able to apply what you’ve been learning in the classroom to work outside the classroom?

I’m lucky, because I got a job as an applied policy researcher while in the program. So I get the chance to apply what I’ve been learning in the classroom almost every day, which has been incredibly valuable for my learning both in the classroom and outside of it. As an example, I’ve gotten to design and implement a number of surveys, and I recently helped to conduct a financial analysis of the cost to maintain Idaho’s public roadways.