Is Congress too partisan? Can Congress fulfill its legislative and oversight functions? Do the executive and judicial branches effectively control public policy formulation? Have the State Legislatures become the true "laboratories of...
The main idea that we want to get across is implicit in the title: Systematic thinking - largely from the social sciences, but with the application of scientific methods and knowledge more generally - can make a significant difference in the way...
During the twentieth century, the U.S. both saw the development of a social welfare system to serve nonelderly families and a subsequent dramatic overhaul of the cash welfare part of that...
The purpose of this course is to expose students to various perspectives on state and local policy in the U.S. through the lens of one especially topical policy area: development...
Although the American research university serves as a key source of basic research, advanced education, and infrastructure critical to the nation’s welfare, it faces many challenges such as shifting public policies, changing demographics,...
What goes on in city government is in many ways more important to our lives than what happens in Washington. This course goes beyond the structure and theory of municipal government to look at how things really happen at the local...
Although the American research university serves as a key source of basic research, advanced education, and infrastructure critical to the nation’s welfare, it faces many challenges such as shifting public policies, changing demographics,...
This course developed from an initiative of the International Policy Students Association (IPSA) at the Ford School of Public Policy. It will be in two...
This course will deal primarily with the Legislative Branch of Government at both the State and Federal levels. Legislative strategies and the possible outcomes of those strategies will be...
This course fulfills the Public Management core requirement for M.P.P. students who are interested in nonprofit organizations in the context of public...
This course seeks to make students sensitive to and articulate about the ways in which moral and political values come into play in the American policy process, particularly as they affect non-elected public officials who work in a world shaped...
The Applied Policy Seminar (APS) (now called Strategic Public Policy Consulting or SPPC) is an opportunity for students to conduct a faculty-supervised consulting project for a public, private, or non-profit sector policy organization at the...
The Senior Colloquium will follow the debate that ensues from the release of the Report of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform on December...
This seminar examines environmental and energy policies. We discuss the sources of environmental problems and what regulations are available to remedy these...
This course examines the extent, causes, and consequences of poverty in the U.S. and current and proposed strategies to address non-elderly poverty. We review the evolution of social welfare policy in the...
What goes on in city government is in many ways more important to our lives than what happens in Washington. This course goes beyond the structure and theory of municipal government to look at how things really happen at the local...
This course will explore the global issues of illegal drugs, crime and terrorism. Course content emphasizes policy options, formulation and implementation, and the tools and skills needed to produce effective recommendations for decision...
This course is designed to immerse students in a major research project of their own design. By the end of the two-semester course, students will be required to produce a polished paper, which can later be incorporated into their...
Democracy and Education --- When Americans write about democracy and education, they typically write about the constructive effects that education can have for democracy by improving future citizens' knowledge, political judgment, capacity for...
This course explores various approaches to civil rights policy, including efforts to prevent discrimination, to "level the playing field," to create equality, and to provide...
The Washington Post examines both the devastation caused by AR-15 assault rifles as well as its allure for segments of American society, in a 14-part series. January, 2024.
The 2023 Mayors Forum will focus on topics particular to Big Ten college cities including development of infrastructure that promotes social cohesion, challenges and opportunities of creating an infrastructure for urban technology, and campus and
