Law and Public Policy: Doctor of Public Administration

Students in this course are introduced to Walden University and to the requirements for successful participation in an online curriculum. Students work toward building a foundation for academic and professional success as a scholar-practitioner and social change agent. They assess the relationship of mission and vision to professional goals and develop a program of study and strategies for online success. Students also explore resources used throughout the program, such as the online Walden University Library. Students engage in course assignments focused on the practical application of professional writing, critical-thinking skills, and the promotion of professional and academic excellence as they relate to practice in public policy and administration.

Students in this course are introduced to Walden University and to the requirements for successful participation in an online curriculum. Students work toward building a foundation for academic and professional success as a scholar-practitioner and social change agent. They assess the relationship of mission and vision to professional goals and develop a program of study and strategies for online success. Students also explore resources used throughout the program, such as the online Walden University Library. Students engage in course assignments focused on the practical application of professional writing, critical-thinking skills, and the promotion of professional and academic excellence as they relate to practice in public policy and administration.

Ethics is a foundational element of leadership. In this course, students examine the philosophy of ethics as well as responsibility and social justice—basic tenets of public service. Students explore the complex social, political, and related ethical challenges leaders face as they seek to meet the needs of diverse constituents. They examine ethics and social justice related to economic disparity, power, and privilege. Students also assess demographic data and current social trends and themes to understand, analyze, and address ethical and social justice issues that impact service delivery in a global community. Applying concepts presented in the course, students engage in an in-depth assessment of an emerging or persistent ethical or social justice issue, through which they demonstrate their ability to make recommendations for improvement or change.

Students in this course engage in a collaborative study of the changing strategic context of public administration. Students apply a systems perspective to construct a public enterprise "mental" model of a public organization to understand the strategic context for practical action and the stakeholder relations involved. Students demonstrate their knowledge of the interrelated flows of money, knowledge, and influence as they weave these elements in their model. They engage in readings and practical assignments that emphasize management and leadership in a time of unprecedented and unpredictable change. Students also work toward developing professional-action habits for pragmatic action-learning in the practice of public administration.

In this research course, students are provided with core knowledge and skills for understanding, analyzing, and designing research at the graduate level. Students explore the philosophy of science, the role of theory, and research processes. Quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods research designs and data collection methods are introduced. The alignment of research components is emphasized. Students also explore ethical and social change implications of designing and conducting research. Students demonstrate their knowledge and skills by developing an annotated bibliography.

Public policymakers often rely on microeconomic and macroeconomic models to formulate new policies and reevaluate existing polices. In this course, students examine the use of such models in the public policy setting and assess how public finance influences policy choices as well as implementation alternatives. Through weekly analytical writing assignments and peer discussions, students explore tax policies and tax incentive models; budgeting; public/private models; market influences on policy; the impact of government expenditures on income redistribution; and economic considerations of welfare, food stamps, workers' compensation, Social Security, and outsourcing of public programs. Synthesizing course content and applying critical-thinking skills, students assess a local government jurisdiction, examine the decisions of policymakers, and recommend improvements based on economic models.

Students in this course are introduced to evidence-based practices and analytic techniques for decision making in the public sector.  Learning focuses on building a tool kit of analytic methods related to budgeting, problem solving, and utilization of data to inform leaders of areas for improvement in the delivery of public goods and services.  

Successful organizations in a rapidly changing and complex world require leaders who embrace change and are able to engage others in change. In this course, students use traditional literature, current articles, and interactive media to explore the qualities, characteristics, and skills of effective leaders as well as the theories, models, and relationships between leadership and organizational change. They assess the ethical issues and standards as well as the opportunities and challenges related to leading diverse organizations through change. Students also examine how current leaders employ leadership and organizational change to contribute to social change, and they consider how to use these lessons to make further positive changes within an organization or their own community. 

In this research course, students are provided with the opportunity to develop core knowledge and skills for designing and carrying out quantitative research at the doctoral level, including the application of statistical concepts and techniques. Students explore classical common statistical tests, the importance of the logic of inference, and social change implications of conducting quantitative research and producing knowledge. Students approach statistics from a problem-solving perspective with emphasis on selecting appropriate statistical tests for a research design. Students use statistical software to derive statistics from quantitative data and interpret and present results. (Prerequisites: RSCH 8110 or RSCH 7110 or RSCH 6110.)

Democratic principles are the foundation of modern life. Students in this course are provided with an overview of democratic governance in public administration, public policy, or nonprofit or nongovernmental organizations in modern society. Students examine the theoretical underpinnings of democratic governance and public policy in their chosen area of specialization necessary for doctoral-level research. Students examine the context in which public and nonprofit leaders function and the social institutions that influence public policy and guide administrative decision making. Students also review fundamental theories of governance, research current literature on a specialized topic, and apply best practices as they relate concepts to complete practical application assignments and a final case scenario project. 

Legal decisions and the law often have a major impact on the creation of public policy. In this course, students explore and discuss the relationship between laws and public policy and the impact that court decisions have on policy and policy leaders. They examine the role of administrative agencies in the creation and execution of law and public policy and the role of the courts in resolving challenges to agency rule making; conflicts between executive and legislative branches of government; and conflicts between and among federal, state, and local laws. Students have the opportunity to sharpen their critical-thinking and research-database skills as they search for real-world examples of how fundamental legal concepts and processes affect the creation and execution of law and public policy. 

Analytics is the practice of using statistics and computer programming together to manipulate and gain insight from very large datasets. Analytic processes discussed in this course include data mining, the use of neural networks as a decision-making tool, and exploration into computer-simulated and generated models for public decision making such as agent-based modeling. Analytics are used to understand past events and predict future events.

There is a wealth of vital legal knowledge available to public policy practitioners. In this course, students explore the many print and electronic resources available for legal research. Students examine how practitioners use the law to inform the creation of public policy. They engage in assignments designed to provide practical application of content to learn how to navigate legal libraries, cite cases, and employ research to support public policy. Students also gain experience in applying legal research to case studies and contemporary issues. 

Major issues in the Supreme Court continue to have an impact on public policy at the state and local levels. In this course, students examine major past and current U.S. Supreme Court cases related to abortion, privacy, due process, personal property, and freedom of religion and speech. They also examine major cases related to state powers, government entitlement, and powers of the judicial and federal branches of government. From this assessment, students determine how outcomes of such cases affect public policy. Students also explore and discuss individual rights, property rights, administrative law, immigration law, and foreign policy as well as contemporary issues and case studies, to which they apply legal research and verdicts.

Students in this course will learn to develop funding proposals and propose applied research projects. Learning is focused on two objectives: first, to prepare the student for the doctoral professional administrative study; and second, to prepare the student to write professional documents designed to explore problems in the practice of public administration, propose solutions to those problems, and gain grant-writing skills to fund public and nonprofit organizations.  

The professional administrative study results in a formal manuscript designed and written to address a problem in public administration practice. Each DPA student is required to complete a professional administrative study paper and four quarters of DDPA 8400 with a satisfactory grade. The professional administrative study paper involves students' completing an applied research project that addressed an actual problem or planning situation. Students work under the direction of a faculty chair and a second faculty mentor. The professional administrative study paper takes the format of a consulting report and, at a minimum, includes the following sections:Executive SummarySituation or Problem DescriptionConceptual ApproachDetailed ProcessEvaluationRecommendations or PlanStudents take this course for a minimum of 4 quarters and are continuously enrolled until completion of their Doctoral Study with final Chief Academic Officer (CAO) approval.To complete a doctoral study, students must obtain the academic approval of several independent evaluators including their committee, the University Research Reviewer, and the Institutional Review Board; pass the Form and Style Review; gain approval at the oral defense stage; and gain final approval by the Chief Academic Officer. Students must also publish their doctoral study on ProQuest before their degree is conferred.

This course is part of Walden's commitment to help prepare students to meet the university's expectations for writing in courses at the doctoral level. In this course, students write a short academic essay that will be scored by a team of writing assessors. Based on the essay score, students will be guided toward any further recommended or required writing support needed to meet writing proficiency standards. This required course is free. Students will be enrolled automatically in it after they complete their first term of their doctoral program.