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Celebrating Juneteenth
The country will celebrate Juneteeth on Monday. It is the third time the date has been set aside as a federal holiday (since being proclaimed in 2021), but it has been celebrated by many communities and extended families for decades, if not more than a century.
The holiday honors the anniversary of the date in history when Texans were notified officially that enslaved Americans had been freed, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation had been issued in 1863. Considered the longest running African-American holiday, it is a day dedicated to celebration, reflection, family and commemorating the struggles Black people faced during slavery and after emancipation, and still face today.
While well-known in the Black community, those still learning about Juneteenth's origins and history should be reminded that the Emancipation Proclamation had little impact on Texans when it was first issued: Crops needed to be harvested and Union troops were in short supply to enforce the executive order. Formerly enslaved people finally were able to embrace their freedom when Union soldiers moved into Galveston after the Civil War; some left Texas for the north and others quickly worked to reunite with family in neighboring states. Decades later, former slaves and descendants continued to pilgrimage back to Galveston as part of their Juneteenth celebrations.
The National Juneteenth Museum in Fort Worth, Texas was founded by now 96-year-old Opal Lee, who was instrumental in helping the day become a federal holiday. She has operated a modest museum for almost 20 years and now, thanks to mostly private donations, a 50,000 square foot building is expected to open in 2025. (Read more about this effort and the remarkable Opal Lee here and listen to a wonderful interview with her in 2022 here.)
As more Americans become familiar with the history of the day, more states and communities have declared Juneteenth a holiday and host celebrations to honor its legacy. Below are some informational links with more details:
E-Learning at Your Fingertips
ASPA staff work tirelessly to keep your skills up to date and the information flowing all year long through our e-learning program. Visit our website to see more details about upcoming KeepingCurrent, BookTalk and Student and New Professional series programming.
BookTalk: Human Resource Essentials for Public Service: People, Process, Performance
June 20 | 1 p.m. EDT
Presenters:
Mary Guy, Distinguished Professor, University of Colorado Denver
Willow Jacobson, Robert W. Bradshaw Jr. Distinguished Professor of Public Administration and Government, Associate Dean of Graduate Studies and MPA Program Director, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Jessica Sowa, Professor, University of Delaware
Tough issues face human resource managers. With the specter of Schedule F hanging over federal jobs, the time to understand why good government requires job protections is now. And there are no easy answers for the right blend of remote versus in-person work, or how employees can find meaningfulness in their jobs, or how to forestall workplace violence or how to ensure equitable processes. Join Willow Jacobson as she moderates a discussion with Mary Guy and Jessica Sowa about the three dimensions to human resource management—people, process and performance—and how these frame the challenges of our times.
Upcoming: KeepingCurrent with ASPA's Center for Accountability and Performance:
Planning for the 2030 Performance Management Workforce
June 27 | 1 p.m. EDT
Upcoming: A KeepingCurrent with ASPA's Center for Accountability and Performance:
Staying the Course in Local Government Innovations: The Case for Ensuring Best Practices Don’t Become the Enemy of Better Practices
July 19 | 1 p.m. EDT
From the Archives
BookTalk: How About Them Apples?
Branda Nowell and Brint Milward’s book, Apples to Apples: A Taxonomy for Understanding Networks in Public Management and Policy, provides an empirically observable taxonomy and measurable characteristics to tell one class of network from another. Nowell and Milward argue that without knowing what kind of network you want to create, implement or evaluate, you are in danger of comparing apples to oranges and making the wrong assumptions about how to govern or evaluate the network. Enjoy this excellent book discussion! (Members-only.)
Mark Your Calendars for the 2024 Annual Conference!
In case you missed this announcement a few weeks ago, ASPA's 2024 Annual Conference is back in person and headed to Minneapolis next spring!
Taking place April 12-16, 2024, the theme will be "Building Resilient Communities." Book these dates on your calendar now and keep your eyes open this summer for our call for proposals. Tracks and other information will be announced with the call in several weeks.
Our democratic institutions are weakened; the public administration profession needs to build its resiliency and this conference will share plenty of ideas among attendees for what this looks like and best practices to get there. Minneapolis will serve as an excellent host city—not only as a model for what resiliency can be, but also for excellent field trips throughout the city to see public administration innovations.
We look forward to seeing so many of you there with us! Keep watching your email for more information!
For Purchase: A Call to Serve
Put some motivation in your students' and colleagues' pockets this fall—or any time of the year!
Collected by Marc Holzer, A Call to Serve is a pocket-sized book of motivational quotes about public service, ethics, compassion, citizenship and more.
Filled with hundreds of quotes from a range of public servants, humanists, philosophers, actors, policymakers and more, this collection will help your students remember their calling on their darkest days (and their brightest!).
Click here to purchase your copy today! Bulk orders can be accommodated; contact our membership team for quotes and assistance.
Bush Foundation Launching Grant Program for Slave Descendants in Minnesota and Dakotas
A first of its kind in Minnesota, the Bush Foundation is partnering with Nexus Community Partners to administer its Open Road Fund, whereby grants of up to $50,000 will be issued to 800 descendants of slavery by 2031 to residents in Minnesota and the Dakotas.
At least half of the grants are expected to be given in Minnesota, which has a larger Black population than either of the Dakotas. The grants are seen as a way to help address longstanding issues related to the treatment of Black people dating back to slavery in the region.
According to the Star-Tribune, which broke the news:
"Nexus and the Bush Foundation say the program is not a reparations effort because it is not extensive enough. But community leaders ranked the wealth-building program with only a few others looking to address slavery's generational effects in any meaningful way...Nexus expects individuals to apply for the grants to buy a home or property; to pay for education; to expand or start a business; to buy life insurance policies; or on healing and economic justice initiatives..."
The application period opens on Monday, June 19, to coincide with the Juneteenth holiday.
Click here to read more about this program.
Public Administration Today Highlight
Public Administration Today features white papers, research and blogs from across the profession. This edition's highlight looks at urban structures! If you're interested in more—especially your own curated news feed in your inbox every week—visit the website, create an account and check off your interest areas so you can stay up to date about the latest research being released!
The Grassroots Movement That Built Puerto Rico’s First Community-Owned Microgrid
For two weeks after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico in 2017, Lucy’s Pizza was the only restaurant open in the central mountain town of Adjuntas. The town’s 18,000 residents, like those on the rest of the island, were entirely without electricity.
National Civic League Announces All-America City Award Winners
The National Civic League has announced the winners of its 2023 All-America City Award. These 10 communities showed the strength of their civic capital—the formal and informal relationships, networks and capacities they use to make decisions and solve problems—and provided examples of work to improve the health and well-being of young people and, by extension, all residents. A primary focus was placed on communities that are authentically involving and welcoming youth in their efforts.
Finalist communities assembled teams of residents, nonprofits, businesses, government leaders and young people and presented the story of their work to a jury of nationally recognized civic leaders from June 9-11. After an afternoon of deliberation, the jury selected the 10 winners, which were announced during the closing ceremony.
Winning cities are:
- Charlotte, North Carolina
- Dallas, Texas
- Davie County, North Carolina
- Decatur, Georgia
- Fayetteville, North Carolina
- Gonzales, California
- Hampton, Virginia
- Mesa, Arizona
- Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
- San Antonio, Texas
You can learn more about all the finalists and their projects on the National Civic League website. Videos of all presentations will be available shortly.
Tips and Resources
What the Debt Ceiling Deal Means for Student Loan Payments
The legislation prevents President Biden from issuing another last-minute extension on the payments beyond the end of the summer.
Six Money Tips New Graduates Should Know
"I don’t know" is no longer acceptable when it comes to handling your money.
How to Corral All Your Cords
Here are some clever DIY solutions for organizing computer cords, phone chargers and other cable-clutter that don’t take much time or money
In the News
Today's headlines contain plenty of news coverage of some of our nation's most pressing public administration challenges. ASPA has curated some of the most important stories from recent weeks. If you have not seen these yet, make sure you read them now!
Infrastructure
Public Finance
Public Service
Social Equity
Members in the News
ASPA Member Meghna Sabharwal Awarded University Teaching Excellence Award
The University of Texas at Dallas recognized a group of faculty members for their outstanding achievements recently during the Center for Teaching and Learning’s sixth annual Celebration of Teaching Excellence.
Valerie Lemmie Appointed as Chair of Ohio Civil Rights Commission
ASPA member and former city manager Valerie Lemmie has received a state appointment.
A Model for Reducing Female Incarceration and Breaking the Generational Cycle
By Katherine Barrett and Richard Greene
Trump Indictments Won’t Keep Him from Presidential Race, But Will Make His Reelection Bid Much Harder
By Stefanie Lindquist
Tell Me Something Good...
Need some good news in your world? Check this out:
How to Open a National Park for the Summer Season
The majestic peaks, desert blooms and geological wonders of the United States’ national parks have beckoned to billions since Yellowstone was established in 1872. Nearly 312 million people visited last year, signaling a return to prepandemic levels. Spring and summer months are particularly packed at the hundreds of sites managed by the National Park Service.
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Around Public Administration
Here are the most recent updates from across the profession. Did we miss you? Send us your news and we'll include it in the next round!
Upcoming Events:
Calls for proposals and other updates:
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Public Works Management and Policy Call for Editors
Sage has announced the search for a new editor for Public Works Management and Policy (PWMP). As infrastructure issues become more complex, so do the challenges for those involved in public works management and policy. International professionals in the field need a central forum to keep them on the leading edge of knowledge, theory and practice. PWMP is dedicated to publishing analyses, research and opinions to help shape the agenda for discussion and resolution of the broad and diverse issues facing the international infrastructure profession. The format of the journal is designed to bridge the gap between practitioner and academic discourse on civil infrastructure around the world. The editor will be responsible for soliciting, reviewing and making final decisions on submissions to the journal and will manage all aspects of the publication and review process using the ScholarOne (formerly Manuscript Central) electronic submission and review platform. The editor is expected to maintain timely and effective communication, advance journal performance and work toward upholding PWMP’s high-quality standard. Applicants should have a distinguished scholarly record in environment and development fields and experience in academic leadership roles. Applicants should also possess strong organizational and management skills, the ability to work well with others and a commitment to Sage’s mission: believing passionately that engaged scholarship lies at the heart of any healthy society and that education is intrinsically valuable. Applications are due by June 23, 2023. Contact Publishing Editor Julia Slater for more information.
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Review of Public Personnel Administration Call for Editors
Sage has announced the search for a new editor for Review of Public Personnel Administration (ROPPA). ROPPA presents timely, rigorous scholarship on human resource management in public service organizations. The journal provides research for scholars and professionals to stay abreast of advancements and innovations in the field. Of particular interest are studies that analyze the effects of specific human resource procedures or programs on the management function and studies that assess the impact of human resource management on the broader areas of public policy and administration. Both traditional and emerging topics are encouraged. The editor will be expected to work with Sage to ensure high-quality peer review and timely and accurate delivery of manuscripts for publication. The editor will be responsible for soliciting, reviewing and making final decisions on submissions to the journal and will manage all aspects of the publication and review process using the ScholarOne (formerly Manuscript Central) electronic submission and review platform. The editor is expected to maintain timely and effective communication, advance journal performance and work toward upholding ROPPA’s high-quality standard. Applicants should have a distinguished scholarly record in environment and development fields and experience in academic leadership roles. They also should possess strong organizational and management skills, the ability to work well with others and a commitment to Sage’s mission: believing passionately that engaged scholarship lies at the heart of any healthy society and that education is intrinsically valuable. Applications are due by July 31, 2023. Contact Publishing Editor Cassandra Garcia for more information.
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Public Money and Management Special Issue on "Hyper-Lean" Post Managerialism
This PMM theme will concentrate on understanding the short- and long-term impact on economies, organizations and public sector and not-for-profit employees if the present priorities, funding and management models persist in terms of equity, fairness and the wellbeing of societies. Organizations need to do more than examine their efficiency, effectiveness and flexibility; they need to examine the sustainability of the "hyper lean" post-managerialism logic. We welcome articles that challenge the present entrenched paradigm and instead propose new funding and management logics. All articles are due by July 31, 2023. Click here for more information.
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Public Money and Management Call for Manuscripts
Public Money and Management will publish a theme issue in 2024 that comparatively explores the recruitment, training and retention of senior public officials. There have been many changes in approach to the recruitment, training and retention of senior public officials in different regions across the globe, including a general trend away from purely merit-based recruitment toward the focus on and acquisition of definable skills. This has occurred alongside a more nuanced recognition of the need to reflect greater diversity in the background of public officials in many countries. In the drive to gain more efficient and effective delivery of public services, and to overcome the wicked problems often grappled with in the public sector, the move to skills-based recruitment and training alongside attention to equality and diversity concerns frequently coincide in modernization drives. This theme seeks to solicit articles from an international range of sources to address the question: How should we recruit and retain a public service fit for purpose and what will it look like? All research articles are due November 20, 2023; debate and ND articles are due January 31, 2024. Click here for more information.
PA TIMES Online
Here's a selection of current pieces on PA TIMES Online, covering a range of issues within the profession. We accept individual articles on a rolling basis; if you have a piece you think would fit our publication, submit it to [email protected] for consideration. (Please review our submission guidelines in advance!)
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