Cultural Competency for Public Administrators

Cultural Competency for Public Administrators
Author: Kristen A. Norman-Major
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 383
Release: 2014-12-17
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 131747354X

With a focus on a broad spectrum of topics--race, ethnicity, gender, disability, and sexual orientation at the federal, tribal, state, and local levels--this book equips readers to better understand the complex, real-world challenges public administrators confront in serving an increasingly diverse society. The book's main themes include: What is cultural competency and why is it important? Building culturally competent public agencies; Culturally competent public policy; Building culturally competent public servants; How do agencies assess their cultural competency and what is enough? PA scholars will appreciate the attention given to the role of cultural competency in program accreditation, and to educational approaches to deliver essential instruction on this important topic. Practitioners will value the array of examples that reflect many of the common trade offs public administrators face when trying to deliver comprehensive programs and services within a context of fiscal realities.

International and Comparative Public Administration Education

International and Comparative Public Administration Education
Author: William Hatcher
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 119
Release: 2023-08-29
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1000928527

This book explores the issue of international and comparative public administration and its role in the (Master of Public Administration) MPA program. The contents provide guidance for readers on how to effectively incorporate the perspectives into the classroom. Public administration is becoming an increasingly global field. Not only are scholars working across borders, but public service organizations that MPA graduates are extended to leave are increasingly required to work across multiple countries and cultures. A growing demographic within all MPA programs in the United States is that of international student, many of whom intend to return to their countries and become public servants after graduation. Historically, however, MPA programs have taken a national perspective to their curriculum, predominately focusing on administration within their own country. The national perspective has led to challenges for students as they begin their careers, particularly for students interested in working for the federal government, international nonprofits, and governments outside of the home countries. An international perspective increases cultural competency in our organizations and overall appreciation of diversity. This edited volume will be of great interest to upper-level students, academics, and researchers in public administration, public policy and education. The chapters in this book were originally published in Journal of Public Affairs Education.

Social Equity and Public Administration: Origins, Developments, and Applications

Social Equity and Public Administration: Origins, Developments, and Applications
Author: H George Frederickson
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 190
Release: 2015-02-12
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1317459776

This book is designed to be the definitive statement on social equity theory and practice in public administration. Social equity is often referred to as the "third pillar" in PA, after efficiency and economy. It concerns itself with the fairness of the organization, its management, and its delivery of public services. H. George Frederickson is widely recognized as the originator of the concept and the person most associated with its development and application. The book's introduction and chapters 1-4 offer general descriptions of social equity in terms of its arguments and claims in changing political, economic, and social circumstances, and trace the development of the concept over the past forty years. Chapters 5-9 provide applications of social equity theory to particular policy arenas such as education, or to specific public administration issues such as the range of administrative discretion, the legal context, the research challenges, and social equity in the context of time and generations. Chapters 10 and 11 describe the current state of social equity and look towards the future.

Post-Cowboy Economics

Post-Cowboy Economics
Author: Thomas Michael Power
Publisher: Island Press
Total Pages: 206
Release: 2001-07
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9781597263481

A great deal of reactionary political fire in the Mountain West has been aimed at environmental protection measures that are perceived to have destroyed or diminished the livelihoods of long-time residents. Conventional wisdom sees the economic woes afflicting the region -- declining pay, growing inequality, persistent poverty -- as a direct result of increasingly strict environmental regulations that have crippled natural resource industries such as mining and logging.In Post-Cowboy Economics, economists Thomas Michael Power and Richard Barrett provide a new interpretation of the economy of the Mountain West. Based on evidence from a wide variety of sources, including data on individual employment and income histories of more than 300,000 residents, they clearly demonstrate that the region's economic misfortunes are not the result of changes in regional industrial structure but rather are local manifestations of pervasive national and international trends. The authors: discuss and critique entrenched conventional wisdom and its policy implications present an empirical analysis of changes in the region offer a new interpretation of events affecting the regional economy set forth public policies that will work to protect and enhance the economic well-being of its residents and communitiesThe authors' analysis and interpretation make a compelling case that despite incomes that are low compared to the rest of the country, the region is not suffering from general impoverishment, and that environmental protection, rather than threatening economic well-being, enhances welfare and protects the very source of the economic vitality that the Mountain West enjoys. Throughout, they argue that fearful, crisis driven environmental and economic development policies are unnecessary and inappropriate, and often counterproductive.Post-Cowboy Economics is an important work for professionals and scholars involved with environmental policy, economic development, and resource management, as well as anyone interested in the future of the American West."

Development Review in Local Government

Development Review in Local Government
Author: David N. Ammons
Publisher: Unc School of Government
Total Pages: 128
Release: 2009
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9781560115922

Approving or denying building permits and other land-use applications is an important role of local governments but one that often draws criticism from developers and citizens alike. This volume identifies an array of proven practices for bringing greater fairness, thoroughness, and speed to the development review process. The authors and a team of planning and development review professionals benchmarked with three national leaders and discovered seventy-eight distinctive practices accounting for the leaders' success. In doing so, the benchmarking team not only produced helpful advice for improving development review processes but also demonstrated the value to local governments of a type of benchmarking fairly common in the private sector but rarely used in the public sector.