History
The MPA program was created within the Department of Political Science in 1985. The department had long had sizable undergraduate programs in public administration and health administration, so there was already a number of faculty who had interests in the field. The administration added a new faculty position (for the director), a secretarial position, an office suite, and funds for adjunct faculty. For the impending Ph.D., as well as for the MPA, the University allotted significant supplementary funds for library acquisitions in public administration. The faculty designed seven new graduate courses specifically for the MPA program.
The program has developed in many ways since its inception. Most important of these has been the recruitment of students. The program was designed to be small, admitting fifteen students per year. Believing that students have much to learn from each other, the faculty try to ensure diversity within that small group. That effort has been successful. While more entering students received their undergraduate degrees from Auburn University than from any other single university, many of students did not attend Auburn before starting the MPA. About a quarter of the students represent American minorities and about a quarter are in-service (working in the public sector while attending classes part-time). Some of our students are fresh out of undergraduate school while others have been away from formal education for a number of years.
Other developments have enriched the program. Major research or public service projects by core MPA faculty in such areas as conflict resolution, non-profit management, economic development, and election administration have provided valuable experiences and financial support for faculty and students. Gordon Sherman, Southeastern Regional Commissioner of the U.S. Social Security Administration, endowed a lecture series to bring distinguished public servants to Auburn, primarily for the benefit of MPA students. Cooperative arrangements have been established with various governmental entities that benefit both students and faculty. Examples include the City of Auburn, the City of Opelika, the Lee/Russell County Council of Governments, the Secretary of State's Office, the state Ethics Commission, the state Administrative Office of Courts, the Economic Development Institute, and the Center for Governmental Services through which we have placed students as interns or research assistants with the Alabama Legislature, in particular, the Black Legislative Caucus. On the international level, a faculty/student research and academic exchange program has been established with the College of Public Administration and Policy, The University of Twente, The Netherlands.
These and other developments culminated in the accreditation of the Auburn MPA program by the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA) in June of 1991. This was an extremely significant accomplishment given that programs must have four years of experience before they can seek accreditation and the accreditation process takes two years. Thus, Auburn reached this threshold in as short a time as possible. This confirmed the soundness of the original goal of the Department to develop a small and yet quality academic program to train men and women for the profession of Public Service and Leadership. The Program was re-accredited by NASPAA in 1999 and again in 2006.
Faculty and students continue to develop the program. Faculty in political science and other departments are creating new courses that can serve as electives for MPA and Ph.D. students. A new minor in economic development was added to the curriculum in 1998. Students also have an opportunity to develop contacts with professionals in the area. For example, the City of Opelika established an Internship Program for our students in 2007. These contacts are particularly important for advice on career planning and placement. An Auburn area chapter of the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) has been established to bring practicing professional public administrators, faculty and students together. MPA faculty and students are active participants in ASPA.
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Last updated July 1, 2007