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November 13, 2019
ASPANet.org | PA TIMES.org | Donate to ASPA
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In This Issue:
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ASPA President Encourages Civic Participation
ASPA President Paul Dancyzk has released his November video, which includes a specific call to action for you: Vote in ASPA’s fall elections!
Each year, those who will serve on the National Council are determined by fewer than 1,000 ASPA members, despite this being a decidedly democratic process, open to all members to participate.
Paul, alongside ASPA’s entire National Council, encourages all members to decide now to take interest in who will lead ASPA for the next several years.
Click on the above image to play the video.
Why does voting matter? First, appropriate financial stewardship means everything for an organization of ASPA’s size. Those elected to serve on the National Council hold “duty of stewardship” for our organization’s annual budget, which consists, largely, of your valuable dues dollars. Additionally, those serving in leadership roles make decisions for the organization including mission and strategy; which member services to keep vs. discontinue; where Annual Conferences will be held; general decisionmaking for Public Administration Review; and more.
Take a few minutes now to review the candidates running for national office, determine who will best serve your interests heading into the future and vote accordingly.
All ballots are due by December 7; we look forward to you making your voice heard.
You will need your ASPA login details to submit your ballot. Contact our membership department for assistance.
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The National Debt is Now More than $23 Trillion. What Does That Mean?
According to the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, the U.S. gross federal debt has surpassed $23,000,000,000,000. Although the debt affects each of us, it may be difficult to put such a large number into perspective and fully understand its implications. The Foundation has published an infographic to provide different ways of looking at the debt and its relationship to the economy, the budget and American families.
The federal debt includes debt held by the public, as well as debt held by federal trust funds and other government accounts. In very basic terms, this can be thought of as debt the government owes to others plus debt it owes to itself. America’s high and rising debt matters because it threatens our economic future. The interest we pay on the federal debt is now the fastest growing part of the budget and will total nearly $6 trillion over the next decade. In fact, we spend $1 billion every day, just on interest.
Click here to find the infographic and learn more.
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E-Learning Takes You to the Next Level
ASPA's e-learning opportunities are ongoing throughout the year. Averaging 75 attendees per live event and free for anyone to participate, these events provide you with valuable insights and information at your fingertips. Visit our website to stay informed about all upcoming webinars including KeepingCurrent, BookTalks and the Student and New Professionals Series.
ASPA President Paul Danczyk's November video not only emphasizes the importance of ASPA civic engagement but also outlines webinars taking place throughout this month. Click on the image below to hear more and review the following details about upcoming webinars!
Click above to load the video in your web browser.
Look below for details about upcoming e-learning events!
KeepingCurrent: Creating an Inclusive Work Environment for LGBTQ+ Employees
In partnership with ARNOVA
November 14 | 1 p.m. ET
Presenters:
Nicole Elias, John Jay College of Criminal Justice
Patrick Hale, Babson College
Sean McCandless, University of Illinois at Springfield
Seth Meyer, Bridgewater State University
Kareem Willis, Rutgers University—Newark
In partnership with ARNOVA, this webinar will look at how public administration can take steps forward across the profession to help LGBTQ+ employees feel welcome and included in the organization, from a friendly and professional atmosphere to agency policies that prioritize diversity and inclusion.
BookTalk: Enlightened Public Finance
December 12 | 1 p.m. ET
Presenters:
Girard Miller, Author
Katherine Barrett, Barrett and Greene
Richard Greene, Barrett and Greene
Lynn Hampton, Former CEO, Washington DC Metropolitan Airport Authority
Joseph Meneghini, Retired Local Government Official
This book helps readers understand the world of public finance well enough to make wiser political decisions. Unlike a college textbook, it is written for Democrats and Independents, by an Independent Democrat who once served on the Governmental Accounting Standards Board and worked for decades in the financial and investment industries as a qualified financial expert. This book explains what is and is not possible in the world of public finance, taxation, education finance and health care policy.
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Focus on Membership: Your Valuable Dues Dollars at Work
As mentioned earlier in this newsletter, your dues dollars make up a considerable portion of ASPA’s annual budget, subsidizing the programs and services you have joined ASPA to receive. It is critical that they keep pace with the value of the services being provided, from PA TIMES content to current event webinars (and the ongoing digital archive) to conference programming—even including this newsletter, which keeps you informed about a wide range of activities within the profession.
Beginning January 1, renewing members will notice a small increase in your dues amounts. Each member’s dues will increase by 83 cents per month (or $10 per year). This increase will not only subsidize the professional services you receive every day, but also the increasing level of members-only content being produced.
Going forward into 2020, it will be important that you know your ASPA login information (Need to set a username/password combination you can remember? We can help with that!), as more content and services will be placed behind a login screen. We want to ensure you, our valued members, are receiving these services before others in the profession have access, so we will be password-protecting new products as they are released, adding to the library of publications and offerings already behind our members-only wall.
We look forward to providing you with high-end, professional member programming in 2020 and hope you will continue to enjoy the services you receive!
Questions about this dues increase? Contact us and we will be happy to help!
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“Doing Good” This Holiday Season
As we quickly approach the holiday season, ASPA's leadership ask that you consider supporting our mission through a generous financial contribution. This year’s #GivingTuesday, which occurs annually on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, falls on December 3—recognized around the world as "a day that encourages people to do good." One way you can "do good" is through supporting the public service.
As public servants, “doing good” is a part of our daily lives. From city managers to educators to nonprofit leaders, and so many others, ASPA’s members do good and work to advance excellence in public service through their personal contributions and professional careers, and ASPA is here—all year long—to support that work.
Your contribution allows ASPA to provide a robust e-learning program, produce compelling content through PA TIMES magazine and PA TIMES Online, support the ethical frameworks public servants need to succeed and, most importantly, provide the valuable bridge across the profession that connects us all and enables us to serve the public. This role, in turn, allows you to provide essential services to millions of Americans; promote a more ethical, equitable society; and, best of all, to do good each and every day.
You will receive several messages throughout the holiday season asking that you “do good” through a financial contribution to the public service. Start considering your end-of-year donation now so that when the call comes, you are able to answer it!
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Scammers, Phishers and Hackers, Oh My!
Those pesky internet bots get more creative every day!
ASPA has received reports from our Chapter and Section leaders, among others, that they are being spoofed, once again, through their public email accounts—now, oddly, including fraudulent requests to purchase gift cards.
As the saying goes, “If you see something, say something.” Please report any phishing/hacking/spoofing attempts you think are related to your ASPA leadership activity to the national office so we can be aware of new scam efforts taking place. That said, we will caution you: We cannot assist you with any technological or financial ramifications. As always, we encourage you first to contact your IT department, so they can help you block the ne’er-do-well accounts from your email, as well as your financial institution, in the unfortunate event that you provide financial data to phishers.
Please also make sure you continue to view your inbox with a certain degree of skepticism, so as to avoid being caught off guard, and then caught providing a spammer with access to your bank account, credit card or other payment portal, whereby they can take money from you without you knowing it happened. Look out for grammatical inaccuracies, odd requests from friends, masked email addresses and other tell-tale signs of phishing.
For those who need more tips about how to avoid being scammed, or what to do when it happens, click here and scroll down to the second link on this page, which will take you to a special webinar we hosted last fall on this very important subject.
Make the most of these valuable (members only) resources and contact us with any questions or concerns.
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Census is Asking the Public to Help Fight Misinformation Ahead of 2020
As reported via NextGov in September, the Census Bureau is enlisting the public to defend the 2020 census against misinformation campaigns and other negative activities that might discourage people from participating in the decennial count.
The bureau has created a special email address where people can report any incorrect information or suspicious activities they encounter surrounding the 2020 census directly to the bureau. Officials also launched a new webpage that addresses common misconceptions around the census.
The new resources are part of a broader effort by the bureau and the national security community to protect the census from the types of misinformation campaigns that plagued the 2016 election.
As the NextGov article mentions, looking beyond misinformation campaigns, the 2020 census also faces a number of other tech-related threats. Federal officials fear delayed IT rollouts, shortened security tests and opaque cyber patching processes could leave the decennial vulnerable to system failures and digital attacks. The Government Accountability Office has included the 2020 count on its list of high-risk government programs since 2017.
Click here to read the full NextGov article.
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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 the past few weeks. If you have not seen these yet, make sure you read them now!
Infrastructure
Public Finance
Public Service/Governance/Leadership
Social Equity
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Welcome New ASPA Members!
Click here to view the most recent new ASPA members!
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A Webinar from The Volcker Alliance
State and local governments provide about 80 percent of U.S. public infrastructure spending but reported infrastructure spending may not sufficiently address America’s critical need to repair public assets such as roads, highways, waterworks, and buildings. The Volcker Alliance will release a new paper titled “America’s Trillion-Dollar Repair Bill: Capital Budgeting and the Disclosure of State Infrastructure Needs” and invites ASPA members and friends to join a free webinar on Wednesday, November 20, at 11 a.m. EST. Please click here to register for the webinar. The webinar will be led by William Glasgall, Senior Vice President and Director, State and Local Initiatives, The Volcker Alliance. Presenters include Jerry Zhirong Zhao and Camila Fonseca-Sarmiento, Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota; and Senator Bo Watson, Chair, Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations. Please contact the Volcker Alliance with any questions.
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World Bank Bureaucracy Lab Releases Public Sector Employment Data Set
Did you know the public sector pays a higher wage than the private sector for similar jobs, in 76 percent of countries surveyed? That’s according to recently published data from the World Bank Bureaucracy Lab, focusing on public sector employment and wages, called the World Wide Bureaucracy Indicators. The dataset characterizes the private and public sector labor market and provides comparisons between them on more than 80 indicators, helping researchers and practitioners gain a better understanding of the personnel dimensions of state capability, the footprint of the public sector on the overall labor market and the fiscal implications of the government wage bill. The dataset covers 115 countries, from 2000 to 2016, and includes 89 indicators. Click here for more information.
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Senior Executives Association: 2019 Program Integrity Survey for Federal Employees
The Senior Executives Association (SEA), in collaboration with Grant Thornton, is conducting a survey to assess federal employees’ understanding of fraud, waste and abuse as it applies to program integrity efforts at their agencies. SEA will use the results of this survey to develop training materials to address awareness gaps, and any key insights will be shared, through reports and blog posts, with the broader federal community to drive a shared understanding of fraud, waste and abuse, and program integrity efforts. The overall goal of this project is to improve program management within the federal government and to enable federal program managers to effectively use program integrity tools and processes to deliver stronger mission results to the American taxpayer. Click here for more information.
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SICA Awards Program Accepting Nominations
ASPA's Section on International and Comparative Administration (SICA) is seeking submissions for its four annual awards: the Fred Riggs Award for Lifetime Achievement, the Gould Scholarship Award, the Garcia-Zamor Best Paper Award and the Col Leadership. All applications and nominations are due by December 1, 2019.. Visit the SICA website for more information.
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COMPA Call for Papers in the Field
The Conference of Minority Public Administrators (COMPA) will hold its 2020 Annual Conference in Atlanta, February 26-29, 2020, looking at the theme, "2020 VISION: Refocusing, Reforming, and Restoring Public Service Values and Governance." This year's conference theme is a call to action for public service leaders to embody and exemplify ASPA's core four values; accountability and performance, professionalism, ethics and social equity in our service to the profession and the citizenry. It highlights the courageous work of those who, despite the political, social and economic climax, are using their voice, research and efforts to positively affect and make a significant difference in their respective spheres of influence, communities and the nation. Twelve tracks provide a framework for the conference. The conference program committee welcomes proposals for high-quality conceptual papers, qualitative and quantitative empirical research papers, and policy- and practice-oriented papers, as well as complete panel submissions consisting of no more than four papers. Panel submissions should bring together complementary papers that address similar research questions or topics and provide information on the overall theme of the panel to indicate how each of the proposed papers connects to the panel's theme. Proposals from individuals at all stages of their careers are welcome. Proposals and poster presentations by graduate students are particularly encouraged. The deadline for submission of proposals is December 14, 2019. Email your proposals to [email protected]. Click here for more information.
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Public Voices Call for Proposals: Homeland Security
Public Voices, ASPA's Section on Historical Artistic and Reflective Expression's journal, has issued a call for proposals for a special symposium: "Homeland Security in the Trump Era: On the Border by the Sea." We invite you to analyze, deconstruct and interrogate all aspects of "borders" from Brownsville, Texas westward to San Diego, California, from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific, and across international barriers—such as they exist—into Mexico. This symposium seeks to build new theoretical groundings in ways that create inclusive communities, increase citizen/public collaboration, improve governance, boost administrative prowess and enhance what we know and understand concerning the concept of border security. Submit your manuscripts online before December 31, 2019. Click here for more information.
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SPAR Call for Nominations, Best Book Awards
ASPA's Section on Public Administration Research (SPAR) invites your nominations for its Best Book Award, welcoming nominations for books on public administration published in 2018 and 2019. The criterion for the award is a book that significantly contributes to research in public administration. All research methods are welcomed, as are books across the range of public administration research. This award will be conferred at ASPA's Annual Conference in April 2020. All nominations must be received by January 3, 2020; nominations should list the book title, author and publisher, and include a one-page summary outlining the unique contributions of the book. Please send your nominations to Alisa Moldavanova, Steven Maynard-Moody or Jen Nelles.
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Flemming Awards Call for Nominations
Please consider nominating a deserving federal employee for the 71st annual Arthur S. Flemming Awards. Nominations will be accepted through Friday, January 31, 2020. The purpose of the Arthur S. Flemming Award is to recognize outstanding and meritorious achievement in working for the federal government; to encourage the highest standards of performance in the federal service; to enhance appreciation of our form of government and the opportunities and responsibilities that it presents; and to attract outstanding individuals to a career in federal service. Eligibility is restricted to individuals currently engaged in federal government service and who have served 3-15 years. Only years directly on the federal payroll are considered service. Click here for more information.
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National Civic League 2020 All-America City Award Program
Since 1949, the National Civic League has designated 10 communities each year as All-America Cities for their outstanding civic accomplishments. The National Civic League is accepting applications for the 2020 All-America City Award, focused on enhancing health and well-being through civic engagement. They are looking for applicants with community-driven projects that reflect the concept that good health for the entire community requires a focus on mental, physical, spiritual, cultural and economic well-being. Begin your community's application today to become a 2020 All-America City! Cities, counties, towns and tribes wishing to apply have until February 19, 2020 to submit their application.
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E-PARCC 2020 Cases and Simulations Competition
The Program for the Advancement of Research on Conflict and Collaboration (PARCC) at the Syracuse University Maxwell School is sponsoring its 12th annual competition of E-PARCC to further stimulate the creation of effective and innovative teaching cases and simulations. E-PARCC provides free online resources for those who teach collaborative public management, network governance and analysis, collaborative governance, international development and collaborative problem solving around the world. Two competitions will take place in 2020: Collaborative Public Management, Network Governance and Analysis, Collaborative Governance, and Collaborative Problem Solving; and the Glendal E. and Alice D. Wright Prize Fund for Conflict and Collaboration Case Studies in International Development. Case and simulations studies on E-PARCC vary widely. In general, cases are approximately 15-25 type-written pages (double-spaced); simulations should include a minimum of four players. All entries must include a teaching note and all cases and simulations must be original and not published elsewhere. Selection of the winners will be made by a committee of scholars and practitioners. All case studies and simulations must be submitted no later than March 15, 2020. All entries should be submitted electronically to the PARCC office; questions should be directed to PARCC Director Catherine Gerard. Click here for more information.
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University of Central Florida Hosting PARC2020
The University of Central Florida will hold the 14th Annual Public Administration Research Conference (PARC) this March 19-20, themed, “Challenges and Opportunities for the Next Generation of Public Leaders: Lessons for Community-Engaged and Socially Equitable Urban Governance, Resilience, and Sustainability.” Annually, PARC brings together academics and practitioners to share innovative ideas and engage in discussions related to public administration and community leadership. Click here for more information.
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NISPAcee Announces 2020 Conference, May 2020 in Croatia
The 28th NISPAcee Annual Conference will take place May 14-16, 2020 in Split, Croatia at the University of Split. Its theme will be, “Governance and citizens' rights in the era of Europeanization, globalization and digitalization.” Registration will open in December 2019. Click here for more information.
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PAR Update
Now on Early View:
Entrepreneurship among Nonprofit Arts Organizations: Substituting between Wage and Flexible Labor
Joanna Woronkowicz, Douglas Noonan and Kelly LeRoux
Culture and the Quality of Government
Simon Porcher
Entrepreneurship in the Policy Process: Linking Behavior and Context through a Systematic Review of the Policy Entrepreneurship Literature
Neomi Frisch‐Aviram, Itai Beeri and Nissim Cohen
A Comparative Study of Gender Representation and Social Outcomes: The Effect of Political and Bureaucratic Representation
Sanghee Park and Jiaqi Liang
Viewpoint Articles
Robotic Bureaucracy: Administrative Burden and Red Tape in University Research
Barry Bozeman and Jan Youtie
Rethinking Academic Entrepreneurship: University Governance and the Emergence of the Academic Enterprise
Michael M. Crow, Kyle Whitman and Derrick M. Anderson
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Public Integrity Update
Public Integrity Announces Open Call for Case Study Abstracts: Administrative Ethics
Administrative ethics are prominent in the daily news cycle including reports of impropriety, malfeasance, inequity and other ethical violations in the public and nonprofit sectors. The guest editors of an upcoming symposium in Public Integrity adopt the view that an ethical approach to public affairs is like a muscle that needs to be exercised. This exercise is best accomplished through reflection, exposure to nuance and application to real world examples. Case studies that exemplify public sector ethical challenges in the modern context are therefore essential teaching tools for students and active practitioners at all levels.
In support of this, Public Integrity is publishing a symposium that will provide a series of case studies in applied administrative ethics in contemporary governance and public affairs broadly. We encourage diverse submissions from students, practitioners and scholars alike that explore administrative ethics at the cutting edge of modern society. This call requires an initial submission of an abstract by January 15, 2020. Successful abstract authors will be invited to submit full manuscripts. Full manuscripts will be due in spring of 2020. Specific guidelines and deadlines will be provided with notification of acceptance. Click here for more information.
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New on PA TIMES Online
Every Monday and Friday, ASPA publishes a curated collection of original content that covers public service, management and international affairs.
This quarter, we welcome submissions that focus on social equity. Send your contributions to us at any time; the deadline is rolling. Contact us for more information.
Check out our recent articles and columns:
Power Plant Becomes Power to the People
By Maggie Callahan
How Cities Disempower Community Groups Seeking to Solve Homelessness
By Amanda McGimpsey
Cybersecurity Threats are not Just a Problem for the Big Players
By Richard T. Moore
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PublicServiceCareers.org
Find your next career opportunity at publicservicecareers.org. This online job board is the perfect resource for making a career change or landing your first job in the public service. It lists dozens of positions in academia, government and the nonprofit sector. Below are just a few current listings.
Town Manager – Springfield, Vermont
Visiting Assistant Professor – University of Toledo, Ohio
Human Services Researcher – Mathematica Policy Research, Inc., Princeton, NJ
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