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July 26, 2023
ASPANet.org | PA TIMES.org
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Build ASPA's Future, Answer the Call
ASPA is enriched by the active participation of our dedicated members. Our committed volunteer leadership plays a critical role in charting ASPA’s path: who we are, what we do and where we are headed.
Please consider yourself and/or a fellow member for one or more leadership positions. This year, members will elect five district representatives and a student representative. All will serve on the National Council, our governing board, which is responsible for setting ASPA's policy direction, ensuring our financial and programmatic position and promoting ASPA within the broader public service community. Click here for more information about National Council responsibilities.
We seek nominees representative of the groups and professional interests within ASPA, balancing academic and practitioner, and including international, nonprofit and all levels of government.
In addition, the National Council has charged the 2023 Nominating Committee with presenting a slate of nominees diverse in terms of race, gender, ethnicity, disability, veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation and other important forms of diversity.
Nominations will be accepted until Friday, September 1, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. EDT.
Find more information on our website and start thinking about who you will nominate!
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.
KeepingCurrent: The Impact of Colonialism and Capitalism on the Palm Oil Industry in Benin
July 27 | 1 p.m. EDT
Sponsored by Policy Pathways
Presenter:
Jacques Houssou, Licensed Private Investigator
Colonialism is domination by an outside power over an independent people or area and often involves the utilization of resources by the controller to increase wealth or power. The end of colonial regimes had a significant impact on the economies of West African countries. While experiencing changes toward democratization, the legacy of colonialism on the economies of francophone countries in West Africa led to massive economic decline. By drawing upon the history of his home country of Benin and spotlighting the palm oil industry, our speaker during this webinar will discuss the effects of colonialism and capitalism on the palm oil industry in Benin; the agricultural supply chain of the palm oil industry in Benin; the dynamics facing small-scale women farmers and entrepreneurs; and the emergence of the large-scale corporate sector. Join us for an examination of how the government of Benin responded to reform the crisis through the establishment of social programs and agricultural cooperatives.
Students and New Professionals: Effective Networking for the Classroom, Breakroom and Beyond
August 1 | 1 p.m. EDT
Presenters:
Ana-Maria Dimand, Moderator, Assistant Professor, Boise State University
Nuri Heckler, Assistant Professor, University of Nebraska at Omaha
James Wright, Assistant Professor, Florida State University
Truly effective networking is integrated into your daily life. Yes, happy hours, coffees and lunches are helpful and you should always have business cards in your pocket—but that’s only part of this process. Networking also means staying connected with former colleagues and friends; checking in with acquaintances periodically to keep your name on their radar; building relationships with new contacts; understanding social cues and boundaries; and making plans for socializing in general, whether you “need” anything or not. Networking, done best, is a daily habit and yields important, regular returns. Our speakers will give you their tips and insights and provide networking habits you can adjust to fit your needs.
BookTalk: Tenure at a Crossroads, Again?
August 15 | 1 p.m. EDT
Presenters:
GLA Harris, Senior Associate Dean and Professor, Arizona State University
Jeanette Taylor, Moderator, Alderwomen of 20th Ward in Chicago
Dwight Vick, Instructor, Texas A&M University
Tenure at a Crossroads, Again? goes beyond the explication of tenure to explore the contemporary challenges facing academia at the K–12 and higher education levels. The book examines increased expectations and how existing policies have spilled over into institutions of higher learning once high school graduates enter this domain. Students’ educational expectations resonate with college administrators and policymakers, forcing institutions to adapt to these needs, moving professors to “dumb down” the curricula and teaching to avoid negative evaluations and protect themselves from unwarranted retaliation. The authors offer practical strategies to mitigate current approaches while incorporating innovative mechanisms for the system’s survival.
From the Archives
BookTalk: Making Bureaucracy Work
Making Bureaucracy Work, by Akshay Mangla, finds that legalistic bureaucracies generate improvements in school infrastructure and enrollments, but perform poorly on complex tasks involving coordination with societal actors. Worse, they impose administrative burdens on marginalized groups, weakening societal participation. By contrast, deliberative bureaucracies encourage flexible problem-solving by state officials. Listen in on this webinar as Mangla reveals the complex ways bureaucratic norms interact with socioeconomic inequalities on the ground, illuminating bureaucracy’s role in promoting inclusive development. (Members-only.)
Mark Your Calendars for the 2024 Annual Conference!
ASPA's 2024 Annual Conference is back in person and headed to Minneapolis next spring! More, this year's Call for Proposals will be released in the coming days so keep your eyes on your inbox!
Taking place April 12-16, 2024, the theme is "Building Resilient Communities." Book these dates on your calendar now and start watching your inbox for our announcements as we begin to plan for this event.
Public administration needs to focus on building resiliency to flex and stretch around all of the challenges we face. This conference will share plenty of ideas among attendees for what this looks like and best practices to get there. Minneapolis is an excellent backdrop—not only as a model for what resiliency can be, but also for field trips throughout the city to see public administration innovations.
We look forward to seeing the ASPA community in person again and adding to our numbers with new friends and the Minneapolis community. Keep watching your email for more information!
ASPA New Member Orientation Video Online
ASPA held an in-depth new member orientation earlier this month to introduce those who have joined ASPA this year to the many services and benefits at their disposal. Some of the highlights included:
- An introduction to how to use the ASPA website—and where to find PAR!
- An overview of who ASPA members are
- Details about how to connect with your Chapter and/or Sections
- How to access valuable member services like webinars, the webinar archives, PA TIMES and more
- An interactive Q&A session to address attendees' questions
We know many of our new members could not join us so we have posted the video to our website (scroll to the bottom of the page). Anyone can view this resource and learn more about how to put your ASPA membership to use!
Chapter/Section Leadership Networking Call Next Week
Chapter and Section leaders: Looking to connect with each other? Your next opportunity to do so is next Thursday, August 3.
This monthly networking-based conference call brings together Chapter and Section leaders to learn from each other, ask questions and share successes and lessons learned. (And, of course, we will provide a handful of national office updates for your convenience!)
Register now via the link below and we will look forward to seeing you on August 3.
For Purchase: A Call to Serve
Put some motivation in your students' and colleagues' pockets this fall—or any time of the year!
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 mini-book will help your students remember their public service motivation all year long.
Click here to purchase your copy today! Bulk orders can be accommodated; contact our membership team for quotes and assistance.
Announcing IPMG Editors
Taylor and Francis is pleased to announce that, as of July 1, 2023, International Public Management Journal (IPMJ) will be co-edited by Gregg G. Van Ryzin and Steven Kelman.
Gregg G. Van Ryzin is professor in the School of Public Affairs and Administration (SPAA) at Rutgers University—Newark, where he is interim dean. He has interests in both survey research and experimental methods and conducts empirical studies on a range of topics, including citizen satisfaction with urban services, coproduction, performance measurement, nonprofit organizations, housing policy and public opinion about government policy and institutions. In addition to his appointment as IPMJ’s co-editor, he was a founding co-editor of the Journal of Behavioral Public Administration.
Steve Kelman is Weatherhead professor emeritus of public management at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. The longstanding editor of International Public Management Journal, he now welcomes Van Ryzin as co-editor. Kelman is the author of many books and articles on the policymaking process and on improving the management of government organizations. In 2001, he received the Herbert Roback Memorial Award, the highest achievement award of the National Contract Management Association. In 2003 he was elected as director of The Procurement Roundtable. In 2010 the American Political Science Association awarded him the Gaus Prize, which honors a lifetime of achievement in public administration scholarship.
Call for Member News!
ASPA is working on the next edition of PA TIMES magazine, to be published digitally at the end of the summer. Each edition includes a section of member updates and news. If you have anything you'd like us to consider for this section, please send it to us by July 31, 2023.
For those who need an idea of what we include: Most things! But, check out the most recent edition of the magazine online here and flip to the end for the member updates. (If you missed our most recent round of the magazine, use the link to download your copy and get caught up!)
Happy Birthday, James Webb Telescope!
The James Webb telescope celebrated its first birthday earlier this month, sending out another tremendous photograph from the depths of space, this time of a small star-forming region in the Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex.
This triumph of public administration innovation and know-how was unveiled by President Biden at the White House in July 2022, promising at the time to "study some of the first stars and galaxies that lit up the universe soon after the Big Bang 14 billion years ago" (New York Times).
Per a release from NASA: “In just one year, the James Webb Space Telescope has transformed humanity’s view of the cosmos, peering into dust clouds and seeing light from faraway corners of the universe for the very first time. Every new image is a new discovery, empowering scientists around the globe to ask and answer questions they once could never dream of,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “Webb is an investment in American innovation but also a scientific feat made possible with NASA’s international partners that share a can-do spirit to push the boundaries of what is known to be possible. Thousands of engineers, scientists, and leaders poured their life’s passion into this mission, and their efforts will continue to improve our understanding of the origins of the universe—and our place in it.”
More than just NASA's experts, the Webb telescope is sparking imagination, new research, new uses for the telescope's spectroscopic instruments and new questions to be asked of the universe around us.
Check out more information via the NASA website and stay excited about the possibilities new innovations bring.
SCOTUS Shakes Things Up
ASPA's Bridge edition at the end of June included a story about the end of the most recent Supreme Court term, noting that the final days and decisions released could bring momentous shifts. The Students for Fair Admissions case did just that, ending affirmative action in higher education, but also—by virtue of rejecting this long-standing admissions consideration—changing the future make-up of college cohorts and workforce populations.
There has been no shortage of coverage in the weeks since the verdict was handed down. Here are just a handful of pieces of note:
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!
Sustainable, Inclusive Housing Growth: A Case Study on Columbus, Ohio
Via McKinsey - Over the past two decades, the Columbus region has enjoyed outsize population and economic growth compared with leading peer cities and the U.S. average. Yet growth has come at a cost—specifically by outpacing the region’s supply of available housing. Home and rental prices have soared as stock has been depleted, making homeownership—and sometimes even having a roof over one’s head—increasingly out of reach for many people, particularly those from historically marginalized communities.
Tips, Resources and the Fun Stuff
The Supreme Court Canceled Biden's Student Loan Relief Program. Here's What Borrowers Should Know
Regular loan payments, which had been paused during the pandemic, begin again in October.
Do You Qualify for Biden’s $39 Billion Student Debt Cancellation?
The Education Department announced that more than 800,000 borrowers would see their debt eliminated thanks to fixes made to its income-driven repayment programs.
What Not to Eat When It’s Hot Out
If you’re trying to beat the heat this summer, you might want to reconsider what you’re eating and drinking.
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
Six Takeaways for the Government Workforce Crisis
By Bob Lavigna
College of Charleston Center Explains Role as Third Party to Union Pier Redevelopment
Featuring an interview with ASPA Past President Kendra Stewart.
Solving the Problem of Understaffed Jails and Prisons
By Katherine Barrett and Richard Greene
The Implementation Phase of Burden Reduction and
America Has Too Many Political Appointees
By Don Moynihan
Trust in the Federal Government Is in a Tailspin. Here’s How Agencies Can Rebuild It.
By Edward DeSeve
How External Pressure from Stakeholders Can Encourage Local Governments to Buy Green.
By Ana-Maria Dimand and Milena Neshkova
Lois Warner Promoted to Associate Teaching Professor
Lois Warner has been promoted to associate teaching professor in the School of Public Affairs and Administration (SPAA) at Rutgers University—Newark.
Tell Me Something Good...
Need some good news in your world? Check this out:
Wild Rice Grows Again in the St. Louis River. The Problem Now Is Geese
In a stark turnaround that's one of Minnesota's great environmental successes, the St. Louis River can now produce bountiful bays of wild rice. Or it would, if the geese would leave it alone. The restoration of relatively large and self-sustaining pockets of wild rice is one of several benchmarks to remove the St. Louis River from one of the Midwest's most ignominious lists—as a federal area of concern along the Great Lakes. But first, wild rice has to grow.
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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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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. 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. Click here for more information.
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42nd AAPAM Roundtable Conference Call for Proposals
The 42nd African Association for Public Administration and Management (AAPAM) Roundtable Conference will take place in Livingstone, Zambia December 5-8, 2023, with a theme, "Building Resilient Societies in Africa through Effective Governance and Public Administration." There is a recognition that effective governance and public administration are critical instruments for the realization of the SDGs and Agenda 2063. These two instruments provide a veritable framework for ensuring that policies and programs are implemented efficiently and effectively. Good governance and public administration promote the rule of law and human rights, which are essential in creating an enabling environment for sustainable development. Moreover, effective governance and public administration mobilize resources, build partnerships and facilitate coordination and collaboration between different stakeholders, all of which are indispensable for the successful implementation of the SDGs and Agenda 2063. Ultimately, a discourse on effective governance and public administration is necessary for translating the lofty aspirations of the SDGs and Agenda 2063 into tangible results on the ground to improve the lives of millions of people across Africa. All abstracts are due by July 31. Click here for more information.
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ABFM Opens Annual Awards Nomination Period
Nominations are now being accepted for ABFM's 2023 Annual Awards, which will be presented during its upcoming Annual Conference in October. Its expanded awards program recognizes achievements by faculty, researchers and practitioners in scholarship and service in multiple categories. Nominations should be submitted to the chair of the committee for each award. Self-nominations will be accepted. All nominations are due August 1. Click here for more information.
Aaron Wildavsky Award: ABFM's lifetime achievement award for work in budgeting and financial management in memory of Dr. Aaron Wildavsky. Professor Wildavsky was a pioneering scholar in the fields of government budgeting, public policy, and policy analysis. Chair: Jerry Zhao.
S. Kenneth Howard Award: Established in memory of S. Kenneth Howard to honor lifetime achievement by a practitioner in the field of budgeting and financial management. Chair: Bob Bland
Michael Curro Award: Established in memory of Michael Curro, this award is for the best graduate student paper. Graduate students who have written outstanding papers in the field as part of a course, independent study or other faculty supervised project are eligible. Co-Chairs: Michelle Lofton and
Can Chen
Paul Posner Pracademic Award: In honor and memory of Paul Posner, this award honors lifetime achievement for significant contributions made to the field of budgeting and financial management as both a practitioner and academic. Co-Chairs: Jerry Zhao and Bob Bland
Scholarly Engagement Award: The award is for the best submission for outstanding public budgeting and/or finance scholarly engagement in the previous calendar year. This should entail an effort or product of scholarship whose primary purpose is public and/or community service and the audience is public servants and practitioners. Chair: Justin Marlowe
Best Book Award: The Best Book Award shall be awarded to the best submission for an outstanding public budgeting and finance book or edited volume with a copyright date within the past three years. Award eligibility is limited to books with ABFM members in good standing. The book should be targeted to an academic research audience, and not be a textbook or a practitioner workbook. Preference will be given to books rather than edited volumes. Chair: Justin Ross
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SICA Call for Abstracts
ASPA's Section on International and Comparative Administration is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The Section is partnering with Public Administration and Development (PAD) on a special issue: "Breaking Hegemonies within Comparative and Development Administration." While SICA has provided a platform for scholars engaged in comparative and development studies, the discipline of public administration has often overlooked non-Western topics and perspectives. The administrative experiences and knowledge of regions beyond Europe, North America, and Australia/New Zealand have been marginalized within the field. PAD has a long-standing focus on the administration of non-Western countries, particularly in the Global South, making it a more inclusive and appropriate platform for SICA's anniversary publication. Editors are seeking a vast diversity of research that can contribute to breaking through the traditional roadblocks, particularly inviting papers that can shed light on key topics/themes on comparative and development administration. All abstracts are due no later than August 1. Click here for more information.
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Nonprofit Policy Forum Call for Papers
Nonprofit Policy Forum (NPF) invites papers for a special issue on nonprofits, public policy and migration crises. Crises of migration draw attention in many parts of the world, but are overlooked with dire consequences in others. Nonprofits, NGOs and other civil society actors participate in and are affected by migration crises in a variety of ways. This special issue explores the relationship between nonprofits (or NGOs or other civil society actors), public policy and migration crises. the editors use the term “migration crises” here to capture situations of vulnerable migration that include refugees and internally displaced persons, but might also include other individuals who do not technically qualify for refugee status but are migrating at risk and in vulnerable circumstances. The special issue will be comprised primarily of research articles, and may include one or more research note, policy brief, commentary, case study, interview or book review. All submissions are due August 15. Click here for more information.
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Public Performance and Management Review Special Issue Call for Papers
Public Performance and Management Review (PPMR) will produce a special issue focusing on the potential of generative artificial intelligence (AI) to transform administrative decisionmaking and impact the way the public engages with government agencies. Generative AI refers to systems that, in response to prompts written in natural language, dynamically generate content that is, or appears to be, novel. The recent proliferation of generative AI models has received a great deal of attention, increasingly serving as a source of controversy as speculation over these tools’ effects on society proliferates. With this in mind, PPMR seeks contributions that consider the implications of generative AI for public administration. The editors are particularly interested in studies that reflect on whether these new tools stand to reinforce existing bureaucratic pathologies, as previous generations of government technology have typically done, or to qualitatively change the way public bureaucracies function. Editors welcome all types of contributions, including conceptual and empirical articles. Proposals that include the title, list of authors, and a 300-word abstract should be submitted to the special issue editors by August 15. Contact editors Kaifeng Yang, Gregory Porumbescu or Matthew Young with questions or for more information.
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International Journal of Public Sector Management Call for Papers
IJPSM is releasing a call for papers for a special issue: Governance and accountability of multiple values of municipal corporations. Municipal corporations have been established in different parts of the world to provide local public services (such as infrastructure, utilities, education, health care, cultural and social services) under the influence of new public management doctrines and related neoliberal ideologies. Their hybrid organizational nature implies that their governance is permeated by a multiplicity of values. Scant attention has been paid by previous scholars to how different actors (i.e. board members, auditors, controllers, CSR managers, etc.) and their values affect goals in hybrid municipal corporations and their role in the development of governance and accountability practices. The aim of this special issue is to improve the theoretical and practical understanding of the drivers, obstacles, and tensions for value creation and the accounting implications in municipally owned corporations. This special issue also will explore the role of governance and accountability practices to disclose multiple values created by municipal corporations, with a particular focus on the societal and public values. Editors encourage theoretical, conceptual and empirical submissions from different institutional contexts and by scholars across disciplines. The guest editors will run an online CIRIEC workshop on September 21 and 22, 2023, where authors will be given an opportunity to present and get feedback on their research. The deadline for submissions (full or work-in-progress papers formatted in line with IJPSM’s submission requirements) to the workshop is August 31, via email.
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2023 NECoPA Call for Papers
The 2023 Northeastern Conference on Public Administration (NECoPA) will take place online November 2-3; the theme is "Flexible Governance and Public Service in a Post-Pandemic World." The theme recognizes that the events of the last three years accelerated the reliance of public and nonprofit organizations on increased digital governance, which transformed service delivery and work relations. But during this digital transformation, the lines between work and life have been blurred, and residents expect the public and nonprofit sectors to deliver services at a faster pace and during unconventional/flexible hours of operation. Public and nonprofit administration has been tasked with adapting and managing public service programs in this evolving world to ensure services continue to be delivered effectively, efficiently, equitably and responsibly in both in-person and remote formats. The conference welcomes proposals related to this theme or additional topics relevant to public and nonprofit administration. The deadline for submissions is August 31. Contact [email protected] 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 within 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; debate and ND articles are due January 31, 2024. Click here for more information.
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2024 COMPA Conference Call for Proposals
The COMPA 2024 conference will take place February 25-28 in New Orleans. The theme is "Reshaping Public Administration: A Search for Self-Determined, Participatory and Sustainable Governments." The conference serves as a call to all public servants—scholars, public and nonprofit practitioners, and community advocates and stakeholders—who seek to rethink the future of local communities by revisiting past and present experiences as the foundation for engaging debate on reshaping self-determined, participatory and sustainable local community initiatives. COMPA 2024 challenges public administrators, researchers, scholars, policy wonks, think tanks, nonprofits, faculty, students and both scholars and practitioners across multiple fields and professions to rethink the future of local communities by revisiting past and present experiences as the foundation for engaging debate and reshaping self-determined, participatory and sustainable local community initiatives. We will examine the future of local government and tackle those issues that most directly impact each of us. We welcome research and praxis from different backgrounds and methodological orientations, current updates to traditional models and frameworks, and other emergent perspectives on all issues of public service related to the theme. All proposals are due December 15. 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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