What is Public Administration?

What is Public Administration?

    * As defined by Robert B. Denhardt in his textbook Public Administration:  An Action Orientation, "Public Administration is concerned with the management of public programs... The substantive fields within which public managers work range across the varied interests of government and public affairs, from defense and national security to social welfare and environmental quality, from the design and construction of roads and bridges to the exploration of space, and from taxation and financial administration to personnel and human resources management (Denhardt 1995, pg. 3)." 

Why should you be interested in Public Administration?

    * Whether you are a student, public professional, non-profit professional or private industry professional, you are affected daily by public organizations. From the toothpaste you use, to the foods you eat, to the vehicle you utilize to get around, to the air you breathe and the water you drink, you are affected by the managerial decisions of those in the public sector. Since the likelihood that you will not interact with some public sector organization in the future is fairly slim, it is to your benefit to have some familiarity with what the public sector is all about. 

Why did I create this website?

    * Sometime as the fall semester of 1995 was quickly approaching, my mind was on graduating the following spring with my Bachelor of Science degree and trying to decide what to take my Master's degree in. I was steered toward Public Administration with some good advice and took USD's Public Administration course that semester. I enjoyed the coursework a great deal and two and a half years later I graduated with my Master of Public Administration degree. My emphasis was Environmental Administration, therefore, the bulk of my course writings revolved around the issues of decision making in environmental management. I have written essays on the topics of Forest Fire Management, Recycling Programs/Waste Management, The Endangered Species Act, and Rachel Carson's Silent Spring to name a few. My Professional Report/Thesis was on the administrative nightmares involved with the Government's attempt to construct the first high-level nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain in Nevada. Great topic for anyone interested in that aspect of environmental policy.