Public Administration Courses

Pad 500 Introduction to Foundations of Public Administration (4)
This course focuses on tensions and trade-offs between important values in public administration and the institutional foundations of the public service in political, bureaucratic, and legal settings. Major topics include dimensions of the public sector, characteristics of institutional settings, history of the field, environmental context, and functions, roles, behaviors, and structures.

Pad 501 Public and Nonprofit Financial Management (4)
This course focuses on teaching students how to use financial information to make decisions in public and not-for-profit organizations.  The first half of the course focuses on developing, implementing and controlling agency financial plans.  The course covers an introduction to financial management, the development of operating budgets, tools for short-term decision-making, capital-budgeting decisions, and the analysis of long-term financial options.  The second half of the course focuses on summarizing, reporting on and analyzing an organization’s financial position, and the results of its operations.

Pad 502 Human Resources Development (4)
A survey of individual/group behavior, organizational structure, controls, work design, and motivation is presented as a background. Leads to discussion of the major institutions, methods, and procedures that constitute public personnel systems (the merit system, career staffing, selection, training, position classification, compensation, and workforce planning.

Pad 503 Principles of Public Economics (4)
How do markets allocate resources in an economy?  How do firms operate in both the sort run and the long run?  What effect do taxes have on markets?  What are the key rationales for governments to intervene in the economy?  This class surveys microeconomic theory, with particular emphasis on principles most relevant for government and applications to policy or management.  Prerequisites: Pad 501 and familiarity with algebra.

Pad 504 Data, Models, and Decisions I (4)
Introduction to computer-based tools for planning, policy analysis, and decision making. Topics include administrative and policy models in spreadsheets, dynamic models in difference equations and spreadsheets, making decisions with multiple criteria, resource allocation, probability and decision trees, data bases and information management, and telecommunications in local networks and the Internet. Prerequisites: Familiarity with word processing on either IBM or Macintosh platforms.

Pad 505 (Pos 505) Data, Models, and Decisions II (4)
Basic introduction to statistical methods and tests. Specific course topics include measurement, probability, distribution, tables and graphs, estimation and hypothesis testing, and linear models. Emphasis is placed on interpreting and presenting statistical outputs, including reports generated by computer programs. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.

Pad 506 Foundations of Public Management (4)
An introduction to the theory and practice of public management. Topics include individual, group level, and organizational issues such as creating productive work environments, working within human resource systems, developing a learning organization, facilitating innovation, and managing across organizational boundaries. Cases and exercises will focus on practical applications of concepts covered. Prerequisite: Institutional Foundations of Public Administration.

Pad 507 Professional Applications I (2)
This course emphasizes the early development of professional skills, the ability to work in teams, career planning, and an awareness of trade-offs in modern administration. It normally is taken during the fall semester.  Available only for degree-seeking students in Public Administration and Policy.  Prerequisites: This module normally is taken concurrently with Pad 500.  Successful completion of pre-semester masters orientation.

Pad 508 Professional Applications II (2)
This Module normally is taken during the latter half of a student's core curriculum. It continues the focus on skill development introduced in Professional Applications I and synthesizes material presented throughout the core. Using simulations and other exercises, it requires students to address a significant, multifaceted managerial or policy problem. Prerequisite: Pad 507 Professional Applications I.

Pad 509 Public Service Intern Seminar (1)
Capstone Requirement. Students registered in this course are required to assemble and obtain approval for their capstone portfolio. This class will normally be taken during a student's last semester of enrollment prior to graduation.

Pad 510 Introduction to Legislative Administration (4)
Introduces relevant literature in political science and public administration bearing directly upon legislative administration. Basic theoretical assumptions and methodological approaches will be discussed for understanding of current trends and issues. Includes legislative structure, organization and management, legislative relations with constituents, the executive and civil society.

Pad 511 Special Topics in Public Administration: Professional Competencies (4)
An intensive introduction to the competencies required of professionals in public service. The course is an experientially based set of modules designed to provide basic competencies in the field of public administration, including decision making and group skills, oral and written presentation skills, project management skills, and career analysis and enhancement skills. S/U graded.

Pad 512 Non-Profit Fundraising & Development Fundamentals (4)
This course examines excellent, ethical fundraising trends, strategies and techniques.  The course will explore topics, such as the history of philanthropy, making the case for support, annual funds, capital campaigns, planned giving, corporate and foundation giving, special events, and trends in donor behavior.  In addition, topics include uses of technology, successful leadership, organization and team-building, donor recruitment, retention and stewardship, accountability and budgeting, strategic planning, and the role of the development professional and volunteer, among others.

Pad 513 Topics in Information Resource Management (1-4)
Workshops provide students with an intensive focus on information resource systems, issues, practices and polices at the state and local levels of government. The emphasis will be on the most current research and practices in this rapidly changing environment. Individual workshop topics could include making information technology choices, managing records, information sharing, issues of intellectual property rights, information security, developing and managing web sites, and intergovernmental relationships in IT management.

Pad 514 (Pos 502, Phi 505) Philosophical and Ethical Issues in Public Policy (4)
This course is concerned with the examination of some of the methodological and normative assumptions involved in the formulation and implementation of public policy. Topics may include epistemological issues such as the nature of rationality, justification, evidence, and relativism; and moral and political issues such as nature of liberty, equality, and justice. The significance of these issues will be discussed in connection with concrete problems such as punishment, affirmative action, welfare legislation, reproductive liberty, and the right to life. Prerequisite: Graduate standing or consent of instructor.

Pad 515 (Pos 506) Implementation and Impact (4)
Examination of the process by which policies are put into effect; alterations during that process; effects intended and unintended; and feedback into further policy making. Implementation and impact of legislative, administrative, and judicial policies in particular policy areas.

Pad 516 (Hpm 516) Introduction to Health Policy and Politics (3)
Analysis and description of the health policy processes, with very strong focus on public health problems, including medical care; nature of the public policy process, especially for health issues; and employment in written work of differing models for analyzing health problems.

Pad 517 (Pos 517) Empirical Data Analysis (4)
Introduction to a variety of data-analysis techniques ranging in complexity from simple table construction and interpretation to causal analysis. Within this range are coding, scale and index construction, multidimensional scaling, levels of measurement, measures of association, correlation and regression, panel and cohort analysis, and Markov chains. Introduction to computer technology and functional software. Basic competence in statistics necessary. Prerequisite: One course in statistics or consent of instructor.

Pad 518 (Pos 518) Regression Analysis (4)
This course will give students familiarity with multivariate regression analysis, including Ordinary Least Squares and other regression methods. Prerequisites: Pos 517 or Pad 505 or Pub 505 or equivalent.

Pad 519 (Pos 519) Advanced Statistical Methods (4)
The course will give students familiarity with advanced statistical techniques currently used by political scientists. Topics may include a) advanced regression analysis; b) time series regression; c) categorical data analysis; d) maximum likelihood estimation; and e) other statistical techniques. Prerequisites: Pos 517 or Pad 505 or Pub 505 or equivalent.

Pad 520 Welfare Policy and Management (4)
Analysis of current and former welfare programs, including objectives, policy designs, management systems and effects on low income families. Attention is given to the fine print of laws and regulations and mechanisms for implementing them.

Pad 521 Issues and Practices in Program Evaluation (1-4)
Workshops will be concerned with a range of program evaluation methods or tools that are currently practiced, debated, or endorsed in the field. The emphasis is on the most contemporary public service environments in which program evaluations are conducted. Individual topics will include performance measurement, stakeholder input, outcome assessment methods, data collection issues, and other factors in the comprehensive program evaluation process.

Pad 522 Politics and Policy (4)
Examination of the influence of political factors on the initiation, formulation and implementation of public policy. Considers the role of political institutions and forces in defining and shaping policy options and choices. Seeks to equip the student with the background necessary to operate effectively within the political environment of policy-making.

Pad 523 (Hpm 502) Central Issues in Health Policy (3)
An examination of some of the major issues confronting health policy makers in the areas of health systems, family and community health, and environmental and occupational health. Provides an overview of the impact of public policy on health status, with a more intensive study of a few specific problems such as the financing and organization of medical care for the elderly, retarded and mentally ill.

Pad 524 Systems Thinking and Strategy Development (4)
The course presents a set of concepts and tools for thinking through complex system-wide problems that challenge government managers’ ability to design and manage cross-agency and intergovernmental policies and programs. Students will learn to diagnose and solve complex system-level problems by applying systems thinking and strategic planning tools to case examples.

Pad 525 (Wss 525, Pos 525Q, Aps 525) Feminist Thought and Public Policy (4)
Examination of the implications of public policy research and implementation from a feminist perspective; the coherence or lack of it amongst different models of public policy formation, different perspectives on specific public policy issues, and different orientations within the women's movement.

Pad 526 (Pos 513) Field Seminar in Public Policy (4)
A survey of the substantive, methodological, and normative concerns found in the study of public policy. Offered jointly by the faculty in public policy.

Pad 528 (Pln 528, Pos 528) U.S. Housing Policy (3-4)
United States housing policies since the New Deal, especially their distributional impact and their ability to expand housing production. Emphasizes policy options available to state and local governments and community organizations to expand affordable housing and revitalize inner-city neighborhoods.

Pad 529 (Pos 529) Law and Policy (4)
Examination of the role of the courts in the public policy process and in substantive policy fields; integrates the literature of law and policy and applies it to such areas as mental health care, corrections, human resources, education, and housing policy.

Pad 530 Intergovernmental Relations, Federalism and Public Policy (4)
This seminar seeks to examine the ways in which various aspects of intergovernmental relations affect the adoption and implementation of public policy. The course will focus on the actors in the intergovernmental system and the modes of behavior that have been developed to manage the disparate agendas at play. It will provide an overview of the theoretical literature in federalism and intergovernmental relations and establish linkages to public policy concepts and approaches. This course will also include attention to experience of other federal countries as well as the U.S.

Pad 532 Performance Measurement and Contracting in Government (4)
This course considers the practice of government’s use of private (both for-profit and not-for-profit) service providers and how those contractual relationships are developed and managed. As most government services and goods are provided via arm’s length transactions with non- or quasi-governmental organizations, a focus of the course is the financial, public policy, accountability and management issues associated with contracting in the public sector, including the use of public/private partnerships. This course also addresses the importance of performance management and measurement in relation to services provided directly by governmental organizations and those provided by contractors. Prerequisites: Pad 503 and Pad 505, or their equivalent.

Pad 534 (Pln 535) Environmental Restoration & Brownfields Redevelopment (3-4)
Introduces students to the fundamental issues that confront stakeholders engaged in redeveloping brownfields. Risk analysis and communication, economic aspects, political and social constraints, and the role of public participation are central themes. Linked to brownfields are also smart growth, sustainable development, urban revitalization, and quality of life concerns. The nexus of these fundamental planning concepts and environmental quality will also be explored.

Pad 535 (Acc 535) Law in Financial Market Regulation (3)
This course examines the rationales and main features of regulatory law in financial markets, focusing on banking, securities, futures, options, and other capital markets. It discusses approaches to regulating investor and customer protection, financial institutions, and market structure. It examines relationships among change in financial markets such as financial innovations and regulatory structure and practice. The course discusses the roles of federal and state regulation, self-regulatory organizations and private associations, and firms within the regulatory system. Prerequisites: Prior coursework in study of regulation and/or finance highly recommended.

Pad 536 (Acc 536) Technology in Financial Market Regulation (3)
The development, operation, and regulation of technological systems shape modern financial markets. These systems are developed and overseen by market centers, clearing organizations, and other market infrastructure organizations, as well as sell-side financial firms, institutional investors and other buy-side participants, corporations, technology providers, and public and private regulators. Market controls, technological development, and regulation shape this system individually and interactively. This course examines the central features of technology in financial markets and how market and regulatory controls and social and behavioral conditions produce and interact with them. Prerequisites: Prior coursework in study of regulation and/or finance highly recommended.

Pad 537 Broker-Dealer Accounting, Regulation, and Auditing (3)
This course is designed to enable students to understand the theory and practice of broker-dealer regulation and regulatory auditing in the securities industry.  Nomenclature used in the securities industry is unique and the course examines accounting standards that apply to securities firms.  It teaches students how to read financial statements of broker-dealers and understand stock brokerage accounting.  The course also will help students understand how to audit the validity of the numbers included in broker-dealer financial reports, focusing primarily on the income statement and balance sheet and including the verification of customer assets.

Pad 538 U.S. Health Policy in the Age of Obama (3)
How does "Obamacare" work, why is it designed the way it is, and what have its impacts been so far? The course will examine the Affordable Care Act (colloquially known as Obamacare) through the lens of economics. We will examine the main structure of the Affordable Care Act and how the various provisions address (or fail to address) such key economic issues as asymmetric information, market power, and economic justice. Finally, the course will review empirical evidence on the impacts of the law. Note: this course is offered entirely on-line. Prerequisite: Introductory statistics at the level of RPAD505.

Pad 540 Public Policy Analysis (4)
This course is a survey of public policy analysis.  It builds on the statistical and analytic skills that have been developed in students' prior microeconomics and data analysis courses.  The principal objective of this course is to strengthen problem solving, analytic, and professional writing skills that will enhance students' understanding of the policy process, and increase students' ability to identify problems, enumerate solutions, evaluate alternative policies, and communicate results to clients.  Prerequisites:  RPad 503, RPad 504 and RPad 505; or equivalent courses that cover introductory microeconomics, introductory statistics, and Excel proficiency; or permission of the instructor.

Pad 541 Local Government Financial Management (2)
Study of financial management practices and problems in smaller jurisdictions: counties, towns, small cities, and school districts. Covers revenue sources, borrowing, debt management, disbursement procedures, accounting controls.

Pad 545 (Ehc 545) Principles and Practices of Cyber Security (4)
This course provides a broad introduction to cyber security and the way in which cyber security is viewed, studied, or executed by professionals in industry, government, the military, and academia. For students that approach the topic from a policy or management perspective, this class will enhance your understanding of the interaction between social, technical, policy, and management factors that affect the creation and management of secure cyber infrastructure. A brief introduction to the technical side of cyber security will be provided. The course will offer technically advanced students an opportunity to better understand the management, policy, and political equities involved in cyber security. Students approaching the subject from either the technical or policy/management perspectives will be equipped to take a more advanced technical courses in a multitude of disciplines that make up cyber security. Prerequisites: Pad 554 or permission of instructor.

Pad 546 (Ehc 546) Homeland Security Risk Analysis and Risk Management (4)
This course looks at the various risks that homeland security professionals and researchers are forced to grapple with, including the various threats, vulnerabilities and consequences associated with these risks.  It examines important homeland security policy areas through a risk analysis framework, with an emphasis on issues like infrastructure protection and resilience, cybersecurity, terrorism, and the implications of catastrophic disasters (both naturally occurring and human-caused disasters).  In each of the policy areas of concern, the class will discuss both the risks that exist, but also risk mitigation strategies; including the building of capabilities for preparedness, prevention, protection, response, and recovery.  Prerequisites: Pad 554 or permission of instructor.

Pad 549 (Ehc 549) Cyber Security: Long Term Planning and Risk Management (4)
The goal of this course is to equip decision makers with the principles and methods that will allow for more informed budget decisions as it relates to Cyber Security. First this class will review budgeting basics as well as the core of budgeting for Information Technology and Cyber Security. We will then examine Risk Management as a total program component of Cyber Security as well as applying it to the budgeting process. Finally this class will take a comprehensive approach to managing IT/IS projects from a risk management, budgeting, and procurement point of view.

Pad 550 Foundations of Government Information Strategy and Management (4)
Introduces the interaction of policy, management, and information technology in the design, operation, and evaluation of government operations and public services. Relies heavily on case studies to illustrate how these domains play out in multiple settings and across sectors-public, private, and not-for-profit. Prerequisites: Pad 500 and Pad 506, and Permission of Instructor.

Pad 551 (Crj 648) Terrorism, Public Security, and Law Enforcement (3)
This course reviews the role of domestic law enforcement in homeland security, including the prevention of and response to terrorism. Consideration of strategic issues that arise with respect to specific forms of terrorist threats, and of managerial issues, including the collection, analysis, and dissemination of intelligence, risk assessment and resource allocation, intergovernmental and interagency cooperation and conflict, and investigative authority and civil liberties.

Pad 552 (Crj 655) Crime, Criminal Justice and Public Policy (3)
Analysis and evaluation of crime control policy and criminal justice. Overview of concepts of policy analysis and principles of evaluation research as applied to crime and criminal justice problems. Consideration of deterrence, incapacitation, rehabilitation, and prevention as policy objectives, and intensive examination of selected policy initiatives. Analysis of the criminal justice policy process.

Pad 553 (Ehc 553)Topics in Homeland Security and Terrorism (4)
This course examines an array of topics related to homeland security, terrorism, responses to terrorism, and the role of terrorism in public policy problems.  Depending on the semester, the course will focus on a subset of issues in this field and may include both substantive and methodological topics relevant to the study of homeland security and terrorism. Course may be repeated with topic change.

Pad 554 (Pos 554, Int 543, Ehc 554) Political Violence, Insurgency and Terrorism (4)
This course examines the relationships among, and differences between the following activities in the international political system: political violence, insurgency, and terrorism.  The course will include a consideration of the causes of these activities, their effects on national and international politics, and an evaluation of governmental responses to them.

Pad 555 (Pos 555, Ehc 555) Disaster, Crisis and Emergency Management and Policy (4)
This course studies the policies, statutes, and priorities established by federal, state, and local governments to plan and prepare for emergencies, disasters, and catastrophic events caused by nature, technology, or humans. The course’s scope will include all mission areas established by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and prioritized by the New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services as an example of State policies. The course will rely heavily upon primary source documents, and will involve simulations.

Pad 556 (Ehc 556) Homeland Security Intelligence (4)
This course examines Homeland Security Intelligence at the Federal, State, and local levels.  We begin with an overview of the US foreign intelligence community, its mission, history, structure, and capabilities.  We examine how this community’s composition and structure have changed as its mission was fundamentally altered twice, first with the end of the Cold War and then with the rise if terrorism.  Next, we look at the capabilities of new producers of terrorism related intelligence at federal law enforcement agencies and at the Department of Homeland Security.  The main thrust of the course is intelligence at the State and local levels. The federal government has worked with the states to create significant intelligence capabilities outside the beltway since the events of 9/11/2001.  This course identifies and discusses the State and local customers for homeland security intelligence and examines the degree to which these intelligence requirements are being met.

Pad 557 (Ehc 557) Intelligence Analysis for Homeland Security (4)
This course provides instruction in conducting intelligence analysis, with emphasis on homeland security issues at the State and local levels.  After an overview of the history and structure of the US foreign intelligence community, we review the fundamentals of intelligence analysis tradecraft as practiced within the CIA and other federal intelligence agencies.  Extensive time is devoted to learning and using structured analytic techniques through student-led analytic exercises on terrorism and major crimes.

Pad 558 (Int 542, Ehc 558) Intelligence & US National Security Policymaking (4)
This seminar examines the role of intelligence in the formulation and implementation of US foreign policy.  Through critical analysis and case studies, students will develop techniques to increase intelligence’s contribution to policy deliberations while ensuring that it does not prescribe policy.  The course will assess the most appropriate role for the CIA and the Intelligence Community in supporting this executive branch process.  After an overview of the CIA, its functions, structure, and capabilities.  We review the US foreign policy process, key players, and institutional bias.  The bulk of the course is devoted to a series of mock intelligence and policy meetings on the Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq crises to critically analyze the CIA’s proper role in supporting the policy process.

Pad 559 (Ehc 559) Homeland Security: Building Preparedness Capabilites (4)
The short but significant history of the creation of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will serve as the starting point for this course which will provide a comprehensive and functional approach to understanding this department and its role.  The preponderance of time will be spent in developing an understanding of the nation’s effort, led by DHS to develop preparedness capabilities to prevent, protect from, respond to, and recover from high consequence events caused by acts of terrorism, natural disasters, and accidents.  The course will rely heavily upon scenario-based activities and case studies to guide the student through the DHS maze and the nation’s preparedness efforts at the federal, state, and local levels.

Pad 560 Technical Writing and Communications in Government (2)
Aimed at sharpening the individual skills of public administrators. Included are techniques of report writing, visual aid design, and oral presentation.

Pad 561 (Pos 523, Pln 523) Urban Community Development (3-4)
Examination of policies and programs designed to reduce social and economic distress in U.S. communities. Focuses on local and neighborhood-based efforts to address problems of inadequate housing, unemployment, lack of community services and facilities, crime etc. Considers role of government, private sector, and nonprofit organizations in community revitalization.

Pad 562 (Pln 562) Plan Implementation and Development Management (3-4)
Examines a wide range of tools for managing development and implementing plans.  Methods of public infrastructure finance and capital budgeting are examined in terms of their effects on land use and the pace, direction, nature and density of development.  Alternative ways of paying for infrastructure, including methods for privatizing and shifting costs to private developers, are also scrutinized and compared to more traditional financing methods.  In addition, regulatory, financial, legal, and programmatic tools, as well as tax policies, that influence development and can help put plans into action are examined.  Finally, mechanisms for managing publicly owned real estate, and for acquiring, managing, packaging and disposing of tax-forfeit, abandoned properties are evaluated.  Prerequisite: Pln 505 or Permission of Instructor.

Pad 563 (Pln 529, Lcs 529) Planning for Jobs, Housing and Community Services in Third World Cities (3-4)
Reviews the potential for community development and the improvement of physical, social and economic conditions in the poor urban neighborhoods of countries characterized by mass poverty. Focuses on shanty-town upgrading, sites and services, job-creation programs, and micro-enterprise promotion. Discusses the roles of local and national governments, community participation, business, non-profits, and international aid.

Pad 564 Ethics in Public Administration (4)
The ethics of managerial behavior in government and organization, ethics codes and their implementation, ethical issues arising from the influence of administrators on public policy. Course procedures include readings, discussion, and student projects to relate ethics concepts to case studies or research findings.

Pad 566 (Pln 540, Pos 540, Soc 540) Urban Policy in the United States (3-4)
A research seminar on federal, state, and local policies toward the contemporary city. Evaluation of alternative conceptions of federalism, government intervention vs. market processes, and the political economy of growth. Case studies of current policy issues.

Pad 567 (Pln 560) Local Economic Development Strategies and Techniques (3-4)
Discusses the theory and practice of economic development in urban, small town, and regional settings. Analyzes and evaluates federal, state and local programs. Examines how the community planning process can influence local economic development.

Pad 568 (Pos 568) Foundations of Human Rights (4)
This course examines the legal, political, and social dimensions of the modern human rights movement and its implications for international affairs. It provides both an introduction to basic human rights philosophy, principles, instruments, and institutions, and an overview of several current issues and debates in the field. The course also seeks to analyze the ways in which allegations of human rights violations are dealt with and to expose some of the limitations in the architecture of the international system. Case studies will be used to illustrate contemporary debates regarding hierarchy among rights, conflicts between individual rights and societal priorities, human rights in single-party states, rights and transitions to democracy, amnesty for human rights violations, and the linkage between human rights and other national interests.

Pad 569 (Ehc 569) Cyber Threats and Intelligence (4)
Cyber threats currently are posed by state and non-state actors whose motivations include financial gain, notoriety, social activism, espionage and even revenge. This course will examine cyber threats from different angles to introduce students to today's actors, motivations, tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs), and mitigation techniques, while providing insight into the impact of cyber crime on victim organizations and employees. A variety of case studies will be used to study how TTPs are applied, and aid students in understanding attack consequences, responding agency abilities, and the various protection, mitigation, and remediation measures. The course will also examine models of cyber activity, as well as how models from other fields can be applied to thinking about cyber threats. The objective of the course is to provide students with a foundation for leading their organization in prevention mitigation, and remediation of cyber attacks.

Pad 570 Government Information Strategy and Management (GISM): Comparative and International Perspectives (4)
This course draws from literature and case studies to understand cultural differences in the concepts of digital government, practical applications for building information capabilities of organizations across national and cultural boundaries and understanding the behavioral aspects of digital government within the larger society and global economy. Topics include the global information environment; managing information in multi‐national settings; information access, security, and privacy; information systems for international organizations; international trends in information and technology policies, and using information and technology for global collaborative networks. 

The course content presumes that you are familiar with the principles, structures, and processes of American government and administration and some understanding of public administration in other countries. Students who do not have the prerequisites for this course are suggested also to choose one of the following books (or a similar one) to gain the needed background knowledge: Chandler, J. A. (2014). Comparative Public Administration. Routledge. Jreisat, J. (2011). Globalism and Comparative Public Administration. CRC Press. Shafritz, Jay M., E. W. Russell, and Christopher Borick, (2010) Introducing Public Administration, 7th Edition, Longman. Henry, Nicholas. (2009). Public Administration and Public Affairs, 11th edition. Prentice-Hall. Otenyo, E. E., & Lind, N. S. (2006). Comparative Public Administration: The Essential Readings. Emerald Group Publishing.

Pad 571 (Ehc 571) Military Forces in Support of Civil Authorities (4)
This on-line course provides a comprehensive strategic level examination of the Homeland Security Enterprise and the methodology for integrating Federal and State military forces in support of civil authorities during the planning, training and response phases of emergency operations. Federal, State and Local civilian authorities are responsible for preparing for and responding to natural and man-made emergency incidents and disasters. Emergency managers often include military forces in their emergency management planning and training programs as necessary to support potentially overwhelmed civilian first-responders during an incident. This course examines various agencies associated with homeland security and focuses on specialized military forces mission support sets such as Weapons of Mass Destruction, Critical Infrastructure Protection and defense of the homeland.

Pad 572 (Ehc 572) Disaster and Crisis Management in the Public, Private, and Nonprofit Sectors (4)
This course will examine how disaster and crisis management has evolved over time in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. We begin by identifying key issues and challenges facing emergency managers and other crisis management professionals. We will then systematically examine the similarities and differences across the various sectors and analyze contemporary trends and common challenges, to include risk management, crisis communication and crisis leadership. Through the use of conceptual models and real-world case studies, we will further explore the application of theory and practice within the field. We will examine specific events, how organizations responded to those events, and how those events changed and shaped the various organizations, and the discipline itself.

Pad 573 (Pln 573) Metropolitan Governance and Planning (3-4)
Physical, social and economic conditions in selected metropolitan areas in the U.S. are examined, and the role of institutions of governance and planning in producing and reinforcing current conditions is explored. Pros and cons of competing models of metropolitan governance are examined, and evidence that highly fragmented units of government intensify economic and fiscal disparities, and undermine regional competitiveness and efficiency, is scrutinized. Strategies capable of moving toward greater regional cooperation in planning and governance are considered.

Pad 577 (Pos 577) Information Technology, Globalization and Global Governance (4)
Examines the role of information technology in globalization, democratization, diplomacy, security and international development.  Reviews previous episodes of transformative changes in communications to place contemporary changes in a broader historical context and considers theoretical explorations of the relationship between information technologies and global politics.

Pad 581 (Pos 581) Comparative Defense Policy (4)
Examines how different countries tailor grand strategy and military doctrine to their conception of national security. Draws from cases in Europe, North America, and Asia in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Pad 583 (Pos 583) Global Governance (4)
The organization of world politics in the context of globalization.  Overview of international organizations such as the United Nations and regional organizations such as the European Union.  Examination of the historical and current international legal frameworks.  Analysis of international cooperation beyond the confines of formal organizational structures with particular emphasis on international regimes, institutions and norms that govern state practices in particular issue areas – from trade and weapons proliferations to the environment and refugees.  Also examines transnational relations of non-state actors such as nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and multinational corporations as well as transgovernmental relations of sub-national governments and government agencies that shape policymaking at a global level.

Pad 585 (Pos 585, Inf 585) IT and Homeland Security (4)
This course examines the political, legal and policy aspects of the use of information technologies by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), non-technological dimensions of information collection, use and management and the use of technologies other than computing in the homeland security domain. The course is focused on information technology use by the US federal government but will also examine state and local governments and other countries as well as international issues such as information sharing and international technical standards.

Pad 586 (Pos 586, Hpm 586) Health and Human Rights: an Interdisciplinary Approach (3)
This course takes an interdisciplinary approach to health and human rights and the contemporary challenges and solutions associated with them. The course will be taught by physicians and human rights champions with guest lectures from experts in public health, philosophy, social welfare, law, gender studies, public administration the United Nations, among others. Through lectures, discussion and case studies, students will develop a broad theoretical understanding of health as a human right, become familiar with legal and policy frameworks to support public health, and acquire skills in the application of these concepts and the implementation and evaluation of solutions to our modern health challenges. 

Pad 590 (Pos 611, Cas 601) Seminar in College Teaching (0-1)
An overview of the scholarship of teaching and learning, students will develop and practice teaching skills. Course will be taught in conjunction with the Institute for Teaching, Learning, and Academic Leadership. Emphasizes the skills and knowledge necessary to design and teach a course that effectively facilitates student learning. Topics include: student learning styles, encouraging critical thinking, assessing student learning, designing assignments, active learning & group work, course design, efficient grading, how to run a lecture, and the use of writing in the classroom. Prerequisites: Admission to a terminal degree program and permission of instructor.

Pad 591 (Pos 612, Cas 602) Preparing for the Professoriate (0-1)
Students will develop a working knowledge of the American system of higher education, an understanding of what it means to be a professional academic, and the processes common to tenure-track academic positions. This course will be taught in conjunction with the Institute for Teaching, Learning and Academic Leadership. Topics include: Transitioning from Student to Professional, Understanding Institution Types, The Academic Job Market, What Successful New Faculty Know, Understanding the Tenure Process, Balancing Faculty Commitments of Research, Teaching and Service, Movements in Institutional Change to Improve Learning, Department and Institutional Assessment. Prerequisites: Admission to a terminal degree program; CAS 601, PAD 590 or POS 611; and permission of instructor.

Pad 592 (Pos 613, Cas 603) Becoming a Reflective Teacher: The Teaching Portfolio (0-1)
Students will build on the skills developed in CAS 601, PAD 590 or POS 611 as well as gain a familiarity with scholarship and techniques to help them develop as reflective teachers. Students will construct a teaching portfolio that can be used as part of a job search and as the foundation of a professional portfolio which can be used as a part of the tenure process. This course will be taught in conjunction with the Institute for Teaching, Learning and Academic Leadership. Topics will include: The Teaching Portfolio and Teaching Statement as Formative and Summative Document; Peer Evaluation Training; Designing Courses for Significant Learning; Teaching Materials—Activities and Assignments; Coaching Students as Learners; The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning; Teaching Evaluations; and From Teaching Portfolio to Tenure File. Prerequisites: Admission to a terminal degree program; CAS 601, PAD 590 or POS 611; and permission of instructor.

Pad 600 Fundamentals of Administrative Law (4)
Survey of aspects of public law and legal methodology of particular concern to public administrators. The origins of doctrines associated with American constitutionalism and the rule of law, and the basic constitutional framework and concepts conditioning American public administration. Analysis of current issues emerging from the growth of the administrative process within this framework, involving the delegation to, nature of, and exercise of discretionary powers by administrators, related questions of administrative organization, and the limits placed on exercise of discretionary powers through judicial review and other devices for holding administrative agencies accountable and responsive to the traditional values of democratic government.

Pad 601 Historical Analysis and Public Policy (4)
The class introduces masters students to the unique approach of historians who tackle contemporary policy issues. It aims to demonstrate how historical analysis can be useful in understanding policy challenges. Students will see that the historical approach is especially suited to particular challenges, such as discovering long-term patterns in government institutions that are likely to shape policy outcomes.

Pad 602 (Pos 510) Minorities and the Politico-Legal System (4)
Selected minority problems that appear in connection with the politico-legal system. Legislative, administrative, and judicial responses and exploration of alternative public policy options.

Pad 603 (Pos 509) Citizen Participation and Public Policy (4)
The historic origins of the increasingly used statutory mandate for “citizen participation” as a requisite test of legitimacy, both in the formulation and implementation of public policy; a survey of applications in federal and state law and impact on the subjects and objects of public policy.

Pad 604 (Pos 604, Wss 604) Inequality and Public Policy (4)
This course addresses the formulation and implementation of public policies that seek to end inequalities based on gender, race, class, sexual identity and/or other categories of marginalization.  Theoretical and case study readings focus on the challenges, paradoxes and successes of a variety of social change initiatives.  Prerequisite: Wss 525 (Feminist Thought and Public Policy) recommended.

Pad 605 (Pos 605) Politics of Migration and Membership (4)
Surveys dilemmas faced by local, national and international policymaking bodies addressing population movement.  Attention on the political and policy dimensions, including debates about national identity, immigration policy, political rights of immigrants, and integration (assimilation) policies.  U.S., international and comparative contexts examined.

Pad 606 (Pos 606) Social Capital and Public Policy (4)
This course examines how social capital -- the structure of social ties, norms and networks within social groups -- affect the development and effectiveness of public policy. The course addresses the role of networks in structuring opportunity and inequality; efforts to transform social capital into political action; and the ability of policy to effectively tap into the beneficial aspects of social networks as well as curb negative effects like discrimination. Particular attention is paid to issues of racial and economic inequality.

Pad 607 Non-Profit Governance (4)
This course examines the governance environment where boards and the leadership volunteers that serve on them operate, including what boards and volunteers do and how they do it to maximize nonprofit organization effectiveness.  The aspect of the course that covers the “what” is the formal roles and responsibilities of boards whereas the “how” refers to the non-formal approach taken to carry out their roles vis a vis the organization’s management.  The course utilizes a series of written reflections and Academic Service Learning (ASL) to explore the concept of board effectiveness in a real world context (e.g. students are matched to local boards to assess governance effectiveness).  ASL, which is an intellectual process (academic) and product (service) of learning, is an ideal pedagogy for the theme of the course – exploring ways nonprofit boards and the volunteers that sit on them add positive value to nonprofit organizations.

Pad 608 Readings in Legal and Political Environment (4)

Individual directed reading program in selected topics and problems of the legal and political environment.

Pad 609 Public Employees and the Law (4)
Legal issues affecting public employees, with consideration of the constitutional and statutory context of public employment, including first amendment freedoms, due process protections and equal protection of the law. Such issues as employee discipline, political activity of public employees, liability and privacy issues also covered. Prerequisite: Pad 600 or Pos 628.

Pad 610 Organizational Theory and Behavior (4)
This course uses social science theories and methods to understand human behavior in organizations.  It explores such important areas as decision-making, perception, communication, group dynamics, and such managerial issues as organizational politics, organizational culture, and organizational change.  Students employ case studies and exercises to develop skills in organizational analysis.

Pad 611 Decision Making in Government and Administration (4)
Rational decision theory and decision-making practice as illustrated by case materials. Topics covered may include: the economic concept of utility and maximization; the analytic problems of modeling and uncertainty; the psychological considerations of individual preferences and risk-taking behavior; the organizational and political context of decisions and its effect on agency choice; and current trends in public decision-making structures.

Pad 612 Nonprofits and Public Policy (4)
This course examines the intersection of nonprofit organizations and public policy. Issues include: government-nonprofit policy relationships; tax policy related to tax exemption, market-based commercial activities, and charitable contributions; and current policy debates such as the role of nonprofits in policy advocacy and the role of faith based organizations in social service provision.

Pad 613 Issues in Not-for-Profit Management (4)
Examination of a broad range of management issues relevant to not-for-profit organizations. Topics include: differences between public, private, and not-for-profit management; governance and boards of directors; strategic planning and human resource issues in not-for-profits; resource development; sector convergence and competition; and the government/voluntary sector relationship.

Pad 614 Managerial Leadership in the Public Sector (4)
This course focuses on managerial leadership in the public sector from both theoretical and practical perspectives. Participants will have opportunities to explore their strengths and weaknesses as managerial leaders and to develop skills in these areas. In addition, several current theories of leadership will be examined as the basis for determining the requisite skills of managerial leaders. Prerequisite: Pad 610.

Pad 615 Strategic Planning and Management (4)
Strategic planning and strategic management theories, issues, and techniques. Topics under strategic planning include environmental scanning, organizational assessment, futures research and forecasting models, methods for analyzing organizational culture, goal-setting techniques, and mission/strategy development. Strategic management topics include approaches for implementation of strategic plans, strategic issues management, analysis of managerial and production systems, and management by objectives (MBO) systems. Prerequisites: Pad 504 and Pad 505.

Pad 616 Nonprofits and Social Transformation (4)
This course addresses the role of nonprofit organizations in creating social change in a democracy. The course will focus primarily on strategies and tactics that nonprofit organizations can and do use to make change at individual, policy, and societal levels. Theoretical and case study readings focus on the challenges, paradoxes and successes of a variety of social change initiatives. While this class will focus on nonprofit organizations, a central aim is to provide students who do/will work in nonprofits, government agencies or any other organization with a public purpose with the opportunity to learn tools of social change. Through class discussions and exercises, students will learn to apply these tools in diverse institutional settings and policy domains.
 

Pad 617 (Wss 617) Equal Employment Opportunity (4)
Equal employment opportunity and affirmative action (EEO-AA) from historical, legal, administrative as well as normative perspectives. Primary emphasis placed on EEO-AA in the public sector employment. Prerequisites: Pad 500 and Pad 506.

Pad 618 Public Personnel Administration (4)
An overview of the legal and political context of public personnel management and key activities.  Students will use theory to inform the practice of key personnel functions, including such topics as merit staffing, classification and compensation, performance appraisal, managing diversity, and labor-management relations.  Both federal and New York State personnel systems are covered.  Prerequisites: Pad 500 and Pad 506, or permission of instructor.

Pad 619 Current Issues in Public Management and Personnel (4)
Seminar bridging general management and personnel management issues.  Goals of the course include connecting management theory to practice through the use of case studies, connecting theories to relevant laws, comparing theory to the political reality of managing in the public sector, exploring the trade-offs inherent in implementing various management policies, and using theory to more fully understand current challenges facing the public sector workforce.  Prerequisites: Pad 500 and Pad 506, or permission of instructor.

Pad 620 Normative Decision Making (4)

Course explores how models support policy analysis in the public sector. Compares and contrasts linear programming, decision analysis, system dynamics, and judgment and decision making models. Prerequisites: Pad 504 or equivalent.

Pad 621 Quantitative Methods in Public Administration (4)
General introduction to the use of principal analytical methods in the making of administrative decisions. May include special topics in operations research, decision theory, or multivariate statistical analysis (e.g., multiple regression, factor analysis, cluster analysis). Typical applications of quantitative analysis and the development of models rather than on computational techniques. Prerequisites: One year of college mathematics and Pad 505 or equivalent.

Pad 622 Methods of Public Policy Analysis (4)
Application of quantitative methods to current public policy problems. A term project, conducted in teams and involving the use of quantitative methods is required. Involves reading and discussions of philosophy and methodology, class presentations of projects in process, interim written progress reports, and a final project report. Goals are the policy-analytic experience itself and increased sophistication in the application of qualitative methods. Prerequisites: At least two 600-level courses in policy analysis methods.

Pad 623 Management Information Systems (4)
Introduction to the design of mechanisms for gathering, storing, retrieving, and analyzing information needed by organizations. Emphasizes alternative techniques and the merits of applying those techniques to particular information handling problems. Areas to be studied may include manual and automated processing; general purpose and single purpose systems; batch processing and time-sharing, system evaluation and modification procedures.

Pad 624 (Itm 624) Business Dynamics: Simulation Modeling for Decision-Making (3-4)
Explores the use of computer models to understand, diagnose, and experiment with organizational policy and design options. Students will learn about simulation-based analysis, employ a simulation tool, and apply their knowledge to problems of current importance. Prerequisites: Itm 520, Itm 522, or Pad 504 or consent of the instructor.
 

Pad 625 (Pos 626) Bargaining and Negotiation (4)
Survey of theories of bargaining and negotiation, with emphasis on the use of analytic and quantitative methods to help understand and facilitate negotiation processes. Extensive use of simulation, exercises, role playing, and cases.

Pad 626 Evaluation of Public Sector Programs (4)
The practice of program evaluation in the public sector is the focus of this course. Topics covered include both quantitative and qualitative evaluation methods, data collection, conduct of evaluation in an organizational setting, and utilization of evaluation results. Prerequisite(s): Pad 504 and Pad 505 or permission of instructor.

Pad 627 Cost-Benefit Analysis (4)
Economic analysis used in the design and evaluation of government programs, with emphasis on applications. Topics include cost-benefit and cost-effectiveness analysis, efficiency considerations in program design, and measurement of the distribution and incidence of program effects. Prerequisite: Pad 503 or equivalent.

Pad 628 Readings in Research Methodology (4)
Individual directed reading programs in selected topics and problems of research methodology.

Pad 629 Risk Analysis (4)
This course will review the state-of-the-field in health and environmental risk analysis, with special attention to psychological, organizational, institutional, political, legal and economic factors that influence contemporary attitudes and policies concerning such risks.

Pad 630 Topics in Information Management for Nonprofits (1-4)
This course covers unique issues faced by nonprofit organizations related to emerging technology issues. Students will examine policy, management, and technical requirements related to the development and use of information technology to support nonprofit organizational management. In addition to studying the conceptual underpinnings of information management in the nonprofit sector, participants will be trained in specific technology and management tools to enhance organizational effectiveness.

Pad 631 Cost Management for Government and Nonprofit Organizations (4)
This course will focus on issues of management-control systems, cost measurement for reporting and cost analysis for decision making. Topics will include the elements of management-control structures, cost definitions, product costing, cost allocation, standard costing, activity-based management, economic value added, the use of statistical and operations research models in financial management and other current issues in managerial finance and resource management. Prerequisite: Pad 501.

Pad 632 Group Dynamics in Organization (4)
Development of analytical skills in two-person and small-group bureaucratic situations. Emphasis is placed on psychological concepts of perception, motivation and attitude formation. Interpersonal phenomena, such as role structuring and exchange processes, are explored. Use is made of experiments and role playing in seminar environments.

Pad 633 Organizational Analysis and Development (4)
Development of skills to analyze large scale organizational problems likely to be encountered by administrators and researchers. Emphasis is on sociological concepts of process, normative networks, exchange, task, and role structure. The development of organizational theory, as well as relationships between behavioral and rational model systems, are also explored. Use is made of case studies and ongoing research in bureaucracies.

Pad 634 Judgment and Decision-Making Behavior (4)
Theory, research, and methods in the study of judgment and decision making. Alternative models and frameworks for understanding judgment and decision making and behavioral economics. Human capabilities and limitations and their implications for public administration and policy. Prerequisites: Pad 505 or equivalent.

Pad 635 (Hpm 615) Health, Safety and Environmental Regulation (4)
Presents a political and economic assessment of risk regulation policies as they have developed for air and water pollution, work place risks, auto safety, drug regulation and nuclear power. Prerequisite: Hpm 501 or consent of instructor.

Pad 636 Cultural Analysis of Organization (4)
Exploration of the cultural approach to organizational analysis: theory and methods from anthropology, sociology, and history that focus on the subjective experience of organization members. Students complete a study in which these theories and methods are applied to a public, private or non-profit organization. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.

Pad 637 Social and Organizational Networks in Public Policy, Management, and Service Delivery: Theory, Methods, and Analysis (4)
The concept of "network" has become central to many discussions of public policy, management, and service delivery but is rarely studied systematically. This course is designed to explore the theoretical underpinnings of network analysis, introduce basic network analytic methods, and examine and compare insights gained through network analysis with other forms of analysis. Prerequisites: Completion of required statistical courses for the Master's or Ph.D. program; permission of instructor.

Pad 638 Readings in Administrative Systems and Behavior (4)
Individual directed reading program in selected topics and problems of administrative systems and behavior.

Pad 639 Executive Skill Development (4)
Development of the personal and professional skills necessary for effective management in a demanding work environment. Because the purpose of the course is personal skill development, the learning process is highly experiential and effective. A high premium is placed on participation and on assuming responsibility for self in the learning experience.

Pad 640 Nonprofit Financial Management (4)
An examination of financial management techniques for the nonprofit organization. Practices to be studied include fiscal planning, legal requirements, IRS regulations, pricing, operational planning and control, strategic planning, fund raising, and marketing.  Prerequisite: Pad 501.

Pad 641 Basic Governmental Accounting (4)
Survey of governmental accounting principles and procedures for persons without prior formal instruction in accounting. Included are such topics as account classification, cash and accrual accounting, appropriation and program accounts, cost estimation from accounts, development and analysis of financial statements, and the uses of accounting information for managerial decision making. Prerequisite: Pad 501 or permission of instructor.

Pad 642 Public Budgeting (4)
This course will involve a detailed examination of the processes and analytical techniques involved in developing and managing public budgets.  Extensive attention will be put on budget processes and politics, the analysis of public revenue sources, and the techniques of budget analysis.  The course will include considerable analysis of public budgets as well as a detailed examination of current issues, controversies and research in public budgeting.  Prerequisite: Pad 501 or equivalent or Pad 504 or equivalent.

Pad 643 Economics of Government Programs (4)
Why does the government exist?  What are the main economic tools of government?  This class examines the key rationales for public spending -- externalities, public goods, social insurance, paternalism, and inequality.  It then looks at major government programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, education, and Social Security, from both a theoretical and empirical point of view.  Emphasis on reading empirical research in public finance.  Prerequisites: Pad 503 (or equivalent familiarity with microeconomics) and Pad 505 (or familiarity with statistical regressions).

Pad 644 (Hpm 648) Health Care Finance (4)
Examines major policy and implementation issues in the financing of health care, particularly the poor. Among the topics addressed are health cost containment, Medicaid, long term care, AIDS, and the provision of care to the uninsured. Prerequisites: Pad 503 and Pad 505 (or equivalent).

Pad 645 Psychologcal Economics and Policy (4)
Economic analyses are usually rooted in assumptions of perfect rationality, perfect selfishness, and perfect self-control.  Real human beings do not meet these assumptions.  How do real people respond to economic policies?  How can traditional analyses be adapted to use more psychologically realistic assumptions?  How can policy makers use experiments to help design and evaluate programs?  In the past few decades, economists in the fields of Behavioral Economics and Experimental Economics have explored how to draw on the methods and insights of psychologists.  That work has become increasingly relevant in policy circles.  This class surveys the theories, methods, and evidence of these fields and discusses their relevance for designing and implementing public programs.  Readings will consist primarily of professional journal articles.  Prerequisites: Pad 503, Pad 505.

Pad 646 Government and Nonprofit Fiscal Systems (4)
This course provides an introduction to the use of financial information in organizational decision making. It teaches the theory and practice of how accounting information is generated and recorded, how the information is presented, and how it can be used to provide meaningful conclusions about the financial positions and use of principles of financial management to make operating and capital budgeting decisions and to analyze long-term financial alternatives. Topics covered include GAAP accounting, financial statements, financial condition analysis, present value, budgeting, and long-term asset and liability decision making.

Pad 647 Capital Markets, Risk and Governments (4)
This course will examine related concepts of risk and return, the impact of diversification on risk, and the fundamental concepts that underlie derivative products in both equity and debt markets.  It will explore these concepts in the context of regulation, government borrowing, hedging and pension investment activities.  It will include an examination of topics such as: risk premiums, the impact of diversification on portfolio risk, the pricing and expected return on equity investments, the role of derivatives in investments, the pricing of both debt and equity derivatives and the relationship between these concepts and capital requirements.  The course will also examine the basic structure of taxable and tax-exempt debt, the various kinds of issuers (including public authorities), and the pricing of debt in primary and secondary markets.  Prerequisites: Strong spreadsheet modeling skills and Pad 501, Pad 504 and Pad 505.

Pad 648 Economics of Government Revenues (4)
How do governments collect revenues, and what are the effects on the economy?  Who bears the costs of taxation?  Why do many countries have several layers of government (federal, state/province, local) and why do different layers collect different types of taxes and perform different types of services?  What are the effects of welfare programs like TANF and the EITC?  This class surveys the economics of taxation (especially in the U.S.), tax evasion, poverty relief programs, fiscal federalism, local public finance.  The class looks at both theory and empirical research.  Emphasis is placed on reading professional academic sources.  Prerequisites: Pad 503 (or equivalent familiarity with microeconomics) and Pad 505 (or equivalent familiarity with statistical regressions).

Pad 650 Building a Case for IT Investments in the Public Sector (4)
This course presents a formal methodology for making IT investment decisions including problem definition, stakeholder analysis, process analysis, best and current practices, technology awareness, and case building. Students will engage in a project with a university or government customer to build a business case for a new IT investment. Prerequisites: Pad 500 and Pad 506, or permission of instructor.

Pad 651 Labor Relations in the Public Sector (4)
Examination of historical, legal and political aspects of labor relations in the public sector. Different facets of labor relations, including collective bargaining, arbitration, equal employment opportunity; particular attention is given to the nature and appropriateness of unionism in the public sector. Prerequisite: Pad 500 and Pad 506, or permission of instructor.

Pad 652 Seminar on Information Strategy and Management (1-4)
Leaders from government agencies, nonprofit organizations, private companies, and research organizations discuss their perspectives on the field of information strategy and management. Seminar is intended to be taken in conjunction with Pad 550 or 650. Prerequisites: Pad 500, Pad 522, or permission of instructor.

Pad 653 (Hpm 651) Public Health Politics and Policy: Domestic and Global Perspectives (4)
This course examines major political factors that shape health policy decisions and the government response to various diseases and health conditions. Specific questions include: Why are some diseases more likely to get on the public agenda domestically and internationally? Why is it so hard to incorporate clinical and economic evidence into public health policy decisions? What public policy tools are available to target health conditions, and what are the legal constraints on public health intervention? When should public health campaigns employ fear and scare tactics versus positive social messaging? This course explores how policy is used as a tool to further public health goals both domestically and globally. The course is designed to introduce students of policy and politics to concepts and debates specific to the field of public health. Likewise, the course is also designed to introduce students of public health to public policy concepts and approaches. The course will draw on readings examples both from high-income and low- and middle-income countries and will explore similarities as well as differences in theories of the policy process pertaining to each.

Pad 654 Your Money or Your Life: Economics of Health Policy (4)
Why is health care so expensive?  Why do health care markets tend to be inefficient and unjust?  What are major psychological biases in health care behavior?  What incentives does the American health care system create for the different actors in the system?  How can we evaluate health care outcomes?  This course examines major topics in the economics of health care policy, including selection, moral hazard, bargaining power, adoption of new technologies, valuing health, consumer behavior, provider behavior, and psychological health economies.  Prerequisites: Pad 503 and 505, or equivalent exposure to microeconomics and statistics.

Pad 656 Health Care Financial Analysis (4)
Examines the use of health care reimbursement as a policy tool and the manner in which health care providers such as physicians and hospitals respond to financial incentives.  Course involves considerable hands-on exposure to the design and operation of various reimbursement systems including prospective rate setting, managed care, and bundled payment systems.

Pad 657 (Eco 509, Hpm 501) Health Policy Analysis (3)
This course introduces students to policy analysis and management by examining issues in the health sector. It fosters an appreciation of the complexity of policy problems and provides the basic tools used in policy design, implementation and evaluation.  Prerequisite: Hpm 500.

Pad 658 Readings in Public Finance (4)
Individual directed reading program in selected topics and problems of public finance.

Pad 659 Managing Public Service Organization Finances (4)
This course focuses on the tools and techniques of managing government and non-profit budgets and financial decision-making within public service organizations.  Topics include payroll projection and management, purchasing and procurement, contracting for services, budget analysis and planning, budget management and reporting, fund and revenue management, and the importance of internal controls and financial control systems.  Prerequisite: Pad 501.

Pad 660 Theories and Models of the Policy Process (4)
Current theories of the policy process, including policy streams, advocacy coalitions, punctuated equilibria, institutionalist and rational choice models. Considerable emphasis on theory, hypothesis testing and empirical research. Students will finish the seminar prepared to do sophisticated original research in the policy process.

Pad 661 (Int 506) International and Comparative Public Management (4)
This course focuses on tensions and trade-offs between important values in public administration and the institutional foundations of public service in cross-national political, bureaucratic, and legal settings. It examines management within the administrative structures, international organizations and agencies of the UN system and the foreign ministries of UN member states as well as functional agencies of national governments and sub-national governments (e.g. provinces and cities) engaged in trans-governmental relations. Major topics include dimensions of the public sector, characteristics of institutional settings, environmental context, and functions, roles, behaviors, and structures.

Pad 662 Methods of Public Policy Analysis (4)
Develops an appreciation of the approach and techniques of 'systems analysis.' The context is that of the making of 'policy decisions.' Emphasizes the use of examples to illustrate the theoretical and procedural points being made.

Pad 663 (Pos 663) Comparative Policy Systems (4)
This seminar investigates why some industrial societies have addressed challenges such as economic management and social welfare more effectively than others. It compares both policies and institutional structures charged with implementation in countries including France, Japan, and Britain. Privatization and prospects for international cooperation are explored.

Pad 664 (Pos 553) Politics in Developing Countries (4)
Examines theories and practice of development to understand the persistence of poverty in the less developed world. Assesses major international aid agencies and non-governmental organizations.

Pad 665 (Bio 530B) Biodiversity and Conservation: Policy Issues (4)
Survey of approaches to environmental planning and public policy analyses that directly pertain to biological conservation. Students will review economic, political, and legal approaches to policy analysis. In discussions, they will explore strategies for introducing ecological information and conservation needs into the public policy forum. This is a companion course for Bio 530A. Two lectures plus one discussion per week. Prerequisite: Graduate standing or permission of instructor.

Pad 666 (Pos 666) International Environmental Policy (4)
Considers alternative explanations for global environmental dilemmas, including population growth, poverty and runaway technology and the way in which each factor has shaped environmental policy.

Pad 667 (Pos 667) Politics of Environmental Regulation (4)
Evaluation of environmental regulation in the United States and considers the response of political and administrative institutions to complex problems such as toxic wastes. Comparative perspectives on Western and Eastern Europe and Japan.

Pad 668 Readings in Comparative and International Public Administration (4)
Individual directed reading program in selected topics and problems of comparative and international administration.

Pad 669 (Aps 631) Economics of Education II (3)
This course examines K-12 education policy from an economic perspective. Economic principles are applied to issues of resource allocation, finance, and the behaviors of key stakeholders. Topics include: models of student achievement with particular focus on the role of resources, school finance, teacher labor markets, and the effect of various forms of school choice. Prerequisites: Pad 503, Aps 602, or permission of instructor.

Pad 670 (Pos 670) Research Methods in Historical Institutionalism (4)
This class will introduce students to research methods in historical institutionalism, an approach to studying policy and government that has swept through the Social Sciences. Doctoral students will have an opportunity to learn about the research process and work on an in-depth piece of original research.

Pad 671 Managing Public Sector Performance (4)
A survey of major theoretical perspectives on managing performance at the organizational and individual level in the public sector.  The course will review motivation theory, measurement methods and challenges, individual performance appraisal, and models of organizational performance.  Understanding the politics, psychology, and culture of performance measurement will also be discussed.  Prerequisite: Masters students must obtain permission of instructor.

Pad 675 Topics in Public Policy Advocacy (4)
This course examines an array of public policy advocacy strategies, including organizing, public education, and lobbying. Depending on the semester, applications will be to various policy sectors, e.g. issues of concern to women, children, and families, or health care. In addition to covering material on legal, structural, and strategic issues involved in advocacy, the course will examine conceptual underpinnings to understand advocacy as it impacts nonprofit organizations, government, and society as a whole.

Pad 677 The NYS Public Policy Process (4)
This class is an effort to impart practical knowledge about the workings of the New York State public policy process. Driven mainly by a review of the state’s legislative and budgetary processes, we will explore how issues wend their way into and through the policy process. As we review these systems, we will also be looking at avenues for improvement. Goal: to gain a working understanding of the New York State policy process. Through readings, discussions, interviews and guest speakers, participants will explore the dynamics of the state legislative, budgetary, rule making and judiciary processes. Limited to students in the Fellowship on Women and Public Policy only.

Pad 679 Public Administration and Legislatures (4)
The purpose of this course is to impart essential information about working in or working with legislative and parliamentary institutions here in the United States or internationally.  Students will gain comparative insight into the abiding political nature of such organizations while coming to appreciate both their significant administrative needs and the challenges of bringing public administration principles and practices to bear in a legislative environment with particular operational and functional needs.  The knowledge imparted by the course will prove useful not only to legislative staff persons and elected members of legislative bodies, but to public administration students interested in becoming staffers, as well as public administrators and lobbyists who work with, or are affected by the actions of, legislatures.  As current or aspiring public administrators working in legislatures as staff persons or as elected members, course participants will develop an understanding about the administration of the legislative process as well as the numerous other organizational needs of legislative bodies in support of their core mission.  The sensitivities required to perform effectively in such an environment and sustain key elements of institutional development will be explored in depth.  For those seeking to understand the frequently incomprehensible ways of such bodies, the clearer picture that will emerge from the course of what makes legislative bodies tick – their political rationality – will serve class participants well.

Pad 680 Seminar in Legislative Administration (4)
The problems and techniques and alternate administrative structures for administering the legislature and providing legislative support services, including, for example, the preparation of the legislative budget, administration of legislative personnel, scheduling and coordination of hearings, routing of bills, procurement of supplies and handling of archival materials. Original research project on a current problem of legislative administration is required.

Pad 681 Legislative Research (4)
Designed to enable students to develop skills in the utilization of methods of legal research, with particular reference to legislative staff work. Techniques of bill drafting and writing bill memoranda and reports. Use of standard legislative documents. Includes other research techniques in fact-finding and analysis appropriate for legislative research.

Pad 682 Program Seminar in Urban Land Use Policy and Regulation (4)
Consideration of the policy-making process as it relates to the physical and social development problems of urban areas; concepts of community analysis and forecasting; the interaction of technical analysis and politics in the formation of planning policy.

Pad 683 Program Seminar in Managing Local Government (4)
Student research on problems and processes of managing local governments. Topics may include human resources for financial management and design or evaluation of public service programs. Research involves field studios in municipal or county governments and builds on courses previously taken in management and urban policy areas. Public officials are invited to discuss and critique student projects.

Pad 684 Seminar in Urban Policy Analysis (4)
Field analysis of administrative problems in an Albany metropolitan area community; identification of policy alternatives and probable consequences of action programs; survey of social science research methods useful to urban administrators.

Pad 685 Culture and Public Policy: Developing Creative Communities (4)
From the days of being isolated in museums and concert halls, culture in America is becoming integral to community life and public policy as many communities work to embrace and attract “the creative class”.  This course will use an overview of the story of cultural life in America’s local governments to examine the specific opportunities and examples of cultural influences in education, community development, economic development, downtown development, historic structures stabilization, community revitalization, nonprofit fundraising, cultural diversity and public dialogue.  The class will be aimed at building the capacity for public administrators to engage with and utilize community cultural resources and individuals to build healthy communities.

Pad 688 Statistical Programming Workshop (1)

This workshop introduces students to programming in the statistical package STATA, useful for doctoral research, with special emphasis on how to write code that is automated, easily modified, and readable.

Pad 689 Readings in Urban Development (4)
Individual directed reading program in selected topics and problems of urban development.

Pad 690 Regulatory Administration (4)
The reasons for the growth of administrative regulation, regulatory agencies and processes, the nature of their formal legal and informal powers, organization, and procedures, and of their relationships with legislatures, chief executives, courts, and interest groups, including consumer interests. Emphasizes the constitutional, legal, administrative, and political issues raised by the growth and nature of regulatory administration and agencies, and proposals for change as reflected in critiques and recommended reforms in major studies made under private, and federal and state governmental auspices.

Pad 691 Independent Research in Public Affairs (1-12)
Individual work in preparation for required essay. Prerequisite: Consent of program director or program advisor.

Pad 695 Readings in Public Management (4)
Individual directed reading program in selected topics, issues and problems in the area of public management.

Pad 697 Guided Research (1-4)
Close individual guidance by a faculty member in the application of verbal and numerical research methods for the purpose of answering an administrative question, Students design a plan of research and gather, evaluate, organize, and report information on a substantive problem of interest to themselves and the faculty member. The resulting research is expected to be as nearly of professional quality in form and content as possible given the resources available and the background preparation of the student. In general, the research is reported in a colloquium open to all students and faculty. This course may be repeated. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.

Pad 698 Seminar for Administrative Interns (0)
For students who are satisfying the career experience requirement for the M.P.A. and other appropriate master's degrees with an internship in a pubic sector organization, Through written and oral reports presented at seminar sessions, work experience is discussed and related to public administration principles and practices. May be repeated. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.

Pad 699 Special Topics in Public Administration and Policy (1-4)
Special topics in Public Administration and Policy will be selected for detailed examination.  Topics may vary from semester to semester.  May be repeated for credit.  Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.

Pad 700 Operations and Productivity Controls Seminar (4)
Designed for advanced graduate students who wish to explore theoretical and applied resource control systems in public service agencies. Emphasizes nonfinancial delivery systems operations. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.

Pad 702 (Pos 702) Politics and Administration (4)
Comprehensive perspective on the political dimension of public administration in industrial democracies, especially the United States. Relationships between administrative agencies and chief executives, legislative bodies, courts, media, and interest groups examined. Issues raised by federalism and privatization probed. Focus on whether bureaucracy can be kept safe for democracy. Prerequisite: Pad 500 or the equivalent recommended.

Pad 703 Economic and Financial Theory (4)
Examines the important theories in economics and finance relevant to public administration and basic tools of economics and finance needed to understand important public sector issues. Use of economic theory to analyze issues such as market failure, tax policy, equity and efficiency, and provision of public goods. Use of financial theory to understand the basics of financial management in the public sector such as cash and debt management and capital budgeting. Prerequisite: Admission to Ph.D. program.

Pad 704 Research Design (4)
This course prepares doctoral students to design and conduct research studies using quantitative and qualitative approaches. Topics include: different research orientations; how to articulate research questions and testable hypotheses; steps in the research process; basic features of various methodologies including surveys, interviews, experiments, and using secondary data; strengths and limitations of different research methods; and how to develop research proposals. Prerequisite: Pad 705 or equivalent graduate-level course on applied statistics.

Pad 705 Advanced Quantitative Analysis (4)
This course introduces students to multiple regression analysis for analyzing data in the social sciences. Students will learn how to read and critique empirical analyses used in academic publication, what empirical techniques should be utilized given different situations, and how to perform empirical analyses and interpret the results. Topics ordinary least squares, heteroskedasticity, time series, panel data, instrumental variables, logit and probit models, and model building techniques.

Pad 708 Organizational Behavior and Theory (4)
A survey of the major issues and theoretical perspectives in organization theory. Examination of evolution of the field of organization theory, and discussion of the contemporary research on behavior and structure within organizations, and on environmental factors in organization behavior.

Pad 709 Foundations of Public Administration (4)
Examination of questions of identity, action and theory in the field of public administration. Particular emphasis placed on the "intellectual crisis" that public administration has faced and continues to face with respect to its paradigmatic base, scope and methods. Prerequisite: Pad 500 or permission of instructor.

Pad 717 Seminar in Administrative Processes (4)
Selected topics in administrative processes.

Pad 720 Theory and Research on Nonprofit Organizations and the Nonprofit Sector (4)
This course provides an overview of the diverse theoretical perspectives that have been applied to nonprofit organizations and the nonprofit sector, and related empirical research. Drawing on foundational economic, sociological, political science and inter-disciplinary theories and frameworks, the course prepares doctoral level students for academic careers in nonprofit studies within public administration and related fields. Prerequisite(s): Students not enrolled in a doctoral program will need permission from the instructor.

Pad 722 The Analytic Tradition (4)
Use of formal analysis as a basis for public decision making. Traces the contributions of accounting, auditing, economics, organizational analysis, operations research, systems analysis, and statistics to the development of an interdisciplinary approach to analysis. Prerequisite: Open to doctoral students or by consent of instructor.

Pad 724 Simulation for Policy Analysis and Design (3-6)
Continued development of topics treated in Pad 624, Simulating Dynamic Systems, stressing advanced concepts in the formulation of feedback simulations of social systems. Organized around a single paper that requires students to formulate and construct a dynamic model for a public policy problem.

Pad 725 Advanced Applied Quantitative Methods (4)
This class emphasizes the practical execution of quantitative research. Students will access a major public dataset in its original form, study the documentation and codebook for the dataset, clean the data, and use the data for most of the homework exercises, including completing a statistical research paper with tables and figures. All statistics will be done in the form of replicatable, modifiable STATA .do files. The class will also cover advanced statistical methods, possibly including multivariate regression, nonlinear regression, analytical and replication-weight strategies for estimating standard errors, categorical data, count data, censored data, and estimation of systems of equations. In addition to normal course time, students will be required to attend weekly computer lab sessions on STATA. Prerequisites: Pad 688 and Pad 705

Pad 727 Seminar in Organization and Management Research (4)
Selected topics in organization and management research. Prerequisites: Pad 704 and Pad 705.

Pad 734 Seminar on Judgment and Decision Making (4)
Advanced seminar on theory, research, and methods in the study of judgment and decision making including formal analysis and descriptive research methods. Emphasis on application to administration and policy making and advanced research methods. Prerequisites: Pad 620 and Pad 634.

Pad 736 Advanced Seminar in Organization Design (4)
Various aspects of organization design and change. Emphasizes both technical and social elements of organizations. In keeping with the fast-growing knowledge in this area, the course has both a descriptive and prescriptive emphasis.

Pad 737 Contemporary Organization Theory and Management (4)
This seminar deals with contemporary issues in organization theory.  Students are exposed to the dominant schools of thought through the discussion, analysis, and comparison of representative work.  Among the areas covered are power, conflict, culture, organization/environment relations, and economic theories of organization.  Students will learn to identify the strengths and weaknesses of each of these diverse schools of thought and to compare their underlying assumptions.  Prerequisites: Pad 708 or another Ph.D. level course in organizational theory.

Pad 738 The History of Organization Theories (4)
The major organization theories beginning with the late nineteenth century. The organization and political and sociological preconceptions and implications of the theories. The historical evolution of organization theory as an alternative to political philosophy. Theorists are read in the original form.

Pad 739 Contemporary Organization Behavior and Management (4)
This course examines selected recent contributions to the study of organizational behavior. Prerequisites: Pad 708 or another Ph.D. level course in organization theory.

Pad 747 Seminar in Public Finance (4)
Selected topics in public finance.

Pad 748 Quantitative Analysis in Public Finance (4)
Emphasizes current policy problems in the field of public finance and the methodology of applying quantitative techniques to the analysis and solution of these problems. Possible topics include: the role of regression analysis in property assessment, the determinants of local government expenditures, the fiscal impact of grants-in-aid, cost-benefit or cost-effectiveness analysis, and revenue estimate techniques. Open to all doctoral candidates and advanced master's candidates with the consent of the instructor.

Pad 750 Seminar on Social Perspectives to Information Technology in Public and Private Organizations (4)
This course reviews social sciences perspectives to information technologies in public and private organizations. The readings in this course follow a trajectory from ones that focus on the research assumptions underlying studies in technology and organizations, readings that discuss a variety of theoretical frameworks developed to study technology, to readings that highlight empirical studies into particular phenomena associated with information technology in public and private organizations. Students should have taken at least one of the following courses (or equivalent) as pre-requisites for this course or have the permission of the instructor: RPAD550, RPAD708, or RPAD709.

Pad 767 Seminar in Comparative and International Administration (4)
Selected topics in comparative and international administration.

Pad 768 Methodological Epistemological Issues in the Study of Cooperative Public Administration (4)
Covers the research and theoretical concerns of social scientists involved in the study of comparative political and administrative systems. Includes a review of problems of comparison, theory building and the role of social scientists, tools and approaches to comparison.

Pad 777 Advanced Topics in Social Network Analysis (4)
This course is designed as an intensive seminar that will build students’ familiarity and facility with social network methods and theory. It is intended only for students who are strongly considering use of social network methods in their dissertation. Prerequisite: Pad 637.

Pad 824 Advanced Topics in System Dynamics (1-6)
This course presents advanced topics in system dynamics for Ph..D. and advanced Masters Students. Topics and title can vary from offering to offering.

Pad 834 Proseminar on Judgment and Decision-Making (4)
Advanced seminar on theory, research, and methods in the study of judgment and decision making including formal analysis and descriptive research methods. Emphasis on research and teaching in decision science for public administration. Prerequisite: Pad 734.

Pad 881 Seminar in Doctoral Research and Professional Development (1)
First term of a two-year-long seminar for first and second year Ph.D. students in Public Administration and Policy that introduces them to doctoral research and the academic profession.

Pad 882 Seminar in Doctoral Research and Professional Development (1)
Second term of a two-year-long seminar for first and second year Ph.D. students in Public Administration and Policy that introduces them to doctoral research and the academic profession.

Pad 883 Seminar in Doctoral Research and Professional Development (1)
Third term of a two-year-long seminar for first and second year Ph.D. students in Public Administration and Policy that introduces them to doctoral research and the academic profession.

Pad 884 Seminar in Doctoral Research and Professional Development (1)
Fourth term of a two-year-long seminar for first and second year Ph.D. students in Public Administration and Policy that introduces them to doctoral research and the academic profession.

Pad 897 Independent Research in Public Administration (2-12)
Individual work in preparation for the qualifying examinations for the Ph.D. in public administration. A student registering for Pad 897 indicates the portion of the total semester-load devoted to it by listing an appropriate number of 'load equivalent units' instead of credits. Prerequisite: Consent of department chair or departmental advisor to doctoral students.

Pad 899 Doctoral Dissertation in Public Administration (1)
Load graded.  Appropriate for doctoral students engaged in research and writing of the dissertation.  Prerequisite: Admission to doctoral candidacy.