Conduct a limited curriculum review in preparation for next NASPAA reaccreditation to assess current course offerings, with attention to opportunities in offerings by new faculty in sustainability, philanthropy, health systems.

A major priority for the PA faculty for the coming year is to integrate, inform and welcome our three new faculty into our operations and help them to become fully functional as quickly as possible. Our actions include being as transparent as possible on communicating all logistics, operating policies, procedures; facilitating access to College and University resources to assist the new faculty; and offering mentoring sessions with the Division chair to address relevant. The faculty as a whole feel this is a high priority so that the new faculty can smoothly and quickly become part of the PA, CUPA and PSU communities -- especially since all three are experienced and thus are immediately ready to assume active agendas as faculty members.

We will enhance the position of the Division of PA in facilitating leadership for public service. A major element in this work will be successfully completing the search for a Director of the Center for Public Service who brings academic and community credibility and can work on behalf of the Division and the Hatfield School to help position us as one of the lead units at PSU with respect to public service. We will explore the role of CPS in coordinating and communicating externally-funded opportunities and activities, including exploring how CPS can lead on statewide studies (eg of nonprofit or health sectors), and determine needs and opportunities. We will seek opportunities for new initiatives and ways to engage as many of the PA faculty as possible as well as graduate students. We seek to link CPS activities with the other academic and scholarly activities of the PA faculty so that the efforts are integrated and not seen as working independently or at cross-purposes.

We intend to continue discussions of PA’s offerings in undergraduate education in public service. We will further investigate opportunities for a 3/2 program, an expanded minor, or a new undergraduate major, considering constraints and opportunities. We are working to identify barriers/facilitators to accelerated degree programs. We will be investigating collaborations with existing undergraduate majors to determine the best way to pursue this work.