GSPA

Course Description: Financial management is at the heart of governing; how resources are allocated determines the course of public programs and their impact on citizens. Public budgeting and financial management demonstrate a mixture of value-driven and objective processes. It is this mixture which serves as the focus of the course, with the intent of preparing students to apply core concepts as they encounter complex situations in the workplace. The reading topics develop conceptually from general questions of the political economy of the United States, to budgeting processes and technical matters of financial management, to analysis of community financial condition.

Class sessions include instructor and student presentations, whole-class discussions, and small-group exercises. Class members are expected to attend and be active participants in class discussions.

Budget Research: Class members will conduct field research into an asssigned agency budget, presenting their findings to the class. The research will include obtaining a budget from an agency other than the student's own and conducting interviews with not more than three people involved in the preparation of the budget. At the option of the professor, students may conduct their budget research in groups.

Students will offer their findings to the class in a presentation not to exceed eight minutes for a one-person presentation or five minutes for each person in a team presentation. Presentations will use conceptual tools drawn from the course and will be organized in three sections: budget format; issues and challenges; and ways the budget could be made more effective. The presentation will be accompanied by a one-page handout summary of highlights.

Reading Summaries: At the beginning of each of the 11 class sessions with assigned readings, students will submit summaries of the readings, not to exceed two double-spaced pages in length. Summaries will be graded as adequate (2 points) or inadequate (0). Adequate summaries will identify and discuss what the class member believes to be most important ideas in the readings.

Take Home Papers: Class members will write mid-term and final papers, each not to exceed eight double-spaced pages in length. The papers are designed to give the student an opportunity to draw upon course material, especially in-class work, in creatively addressing two broad questions (in each paper) on topics central to the course.

Threshold Writing Requirement: The ability to communicate accurately and effectively in writing is an essential part of academic and professional work. Since this is a university-level course and a course within a professional degree program, there is a required threshold level of competence in writing which preempts grading on other aspects of student performance. This meams that to pass the course, class members must in all written work use appropriate language, structure, and citation style.

Grading: There will be 67 points possible in the course, as follows: Budget research presentation, 15 points; reading summaries, 22 points; take-home papers, 10 points each; class participation, 10 points. Late work will be accepted with a penalty.

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