Why public administration is needed now more than ever: Advancing the scholarship of teaching and learning in public administration: First Public Lecture sponsored by Teaching Public Administration (delivered at the Public Administration Conference,University of Northumbria 12 September 2018)

Why are we having this discussion?

The landscape for public servants has undergone a tremendous change; one, I would posit, that is more pronounced than in any prior timeframe. Consider, if you will, changes from the past 10 years: the great recession in the US and the austerity measures in the UK, the rise of alternative truths and the lack of trust in the media, the decline of citizen’s trust in government, ethical issues in politics, and the attacks on democratic ideals. As John Diamond and David Schultz stated in their joint editorial in Teaching Public Administration and the Journal of Public Administration Education, “…Brexit and Donald Trump are only the most recent manifestations of democratic distemperment. Both represent a turning away from toleration, openness, and respect for rights” (Diamond and Schultz, 2018: 3).

While the economic gains of the past few years should have eased the problems somewhat at all levels of government, the continued attack on the media, on the truth, and the partisan divide have overshadowed those gains. The terms “fake news” and “alternative truths” have become part of our vocabulary. Political interference has been noted in federal agencies dealing with science, such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. In the US Department of the Interior, a federal worker filed a complaint with the US Office of Special Counsel alleging retaliation by the Trump administration for expressing his views on climate change (Clement, 2017).

The view towards public service is not favorable and in the US, we are seeing a decline in those wanting to serve. According to the Partnership for Public Service, millennials now account for only 7% of all federal government employees, which is the lowest in almost a decade (GovLoop, 2017). With baby boomers approaching retirement, and millennials representing 75% of the workforce, we can recognize the warning signs in terms of the pool of available candidates to fill vacant positions (Dews, 2014).

Consider recent headlines, such as “The Trump Effect: America’s Civil Servants are Shunned, Ashamed, and Can’t Get a Date” (Nguyen, 2018) to “Wanted: Public Servants” (Milligan, 2018). Max Stier, president of the Partnership for Public Service, recently commented on the impact on federal career workers the revolving door in federal service—the forced departure of qualified civil servants who are perceived as not supporting the White House agenda. Remarking on the effect of career uncertainty in federal agencies and the frequent turnover in the White House, Max Stier, president of the Partnership for Public Service stated “There’s no question that it not only demeans the value of public service, but undermines the trust the public has in public institutions…Those are all bad for democracy” (Milligan, 2018). Add to that the president’s campaign promise to “drain the swamp,” and civil servants can feel stuck in a difficult situation.

In the UK, public servants are working on plans to implement Brexit in 2019. Jeremy Heywood, Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Civil Service, reflected that “Brexit will be ‘a major test of the Civil Service’s ability to adapt and change” (Heywood, 2018). This has required hiring specialists in policy analysis and trade, and promoting the need to work collaboratively across government. According to the Institute for Government, civil service employment numbers in England have increased about 3% since the announcement of Brexit. Most of the increases are concentrated mainly in policy, since the focus so far has been on formulating policies as opposed to implementation (Cheung, 2018).

However, the UK civil service also has its critics. Former Bank of England governor Mervyn King stated that civil servants have been partly to blame for “the incompetent handling of Brexit” (Smulian, 2018). Last month, the Prospect trade union surveyed 1073 civil service members and found that less than 5% approved of the government’s approach to Brexit, compared with a 19% approval rate last year, a loss of 14% (Prospect, 2018).

While the effects of Trump and Brexit are most pronounced at the national level, public servants at the local, county, district, and state level are also facing pressures, especially when it comes to financing. The great recession and austerity measures severely affected local government revenues, where most activities of government are performed. With reduced financing from the national government, cities and states must increase revenue, reduce spending, or rely on reserves to balance their budget. According to a Brookings Report in July 2018, the current US administration’s 2018 budget had proposed changes to the intergovernmental system by eliminating funds for the Community Development Block Grant ($3B), the Social Service Block Grant ($1.4B), and many more programs directed at local governments (Pagano and Hoene, 2018). “Those proposals and actions point to a new era likely to be characterized by antagonism, greater fiscal obligations for state and local governments (as likely under infrastructure reform), increased regulatory interference in some arenas (particularly on immigration policy), and heightened uncertainty” (Pagano and Hoene, 2018: 6).

These changes have an impact on public servants at all levels of government. They have to understand and apply the rule of law, withstand political interference in policy implementation, and uphold public values, including the norms of transparency, rationality, and ethical standards as Don Moynihan (2017) suggests.

What does this mean for research?

So, what does this mean for us, for public administration research, and the teaching of public administration? Joyce Liddle, Honorary Chair of the UK Joint University Council (JUC), provided a reflection on the historic context of public administration in the UK and how the council has responded to these changes in terms of research and teaching (Liddle, 2017). During Prime Minister Thatcher’s tenure, an increase in the importance of business schools resulted in a changes in politics departments, which is where most public administration programs reside here, much as in the US. This resulted in fewer public administration courses, public administration faculty relocating in business schools, and a decrease in the number of public administration faculty overall. In trying to compete for research dollars, public administration lost out to business departments, and with a loss of revenue from central government, localities shifted their educational funding to business courses, which they believed to be a better fit for public administrators. Although not all doom and gloom, according to Liddle “public administration research, teaching and scholarship are as necessary, if not more so, in 2018, and that issues such as accountability, legality, integrity and responsiveness, and the overall ethical guidelines are vital for both public and private educational curricula” (Liddle, 2017: 575).

In 2017, following the election of a new president, Don Moynihan presented his thoughts on what effect the Trump administration will have on public administration research. According the Moynihan (2017), public administration researchers will need to document the expected erosion of public values and educate public administration students on how they are integral to a functioning democracy. In the area of leadership and motivation, research has shown that transformational leadership fits in a public setting, where leaders put aside their self-interest and work for the public good. That will be sorely tested in this administration as evidence to date has shown a propensity for the White House to appoint individuals who disagree with the mission of an organization (Moynihan, 2017). Consider the appointment of Ryan Zincke—an opponent of federal land protection—being appointed as the head of the Department of Interior; Scott Pruitt—a person who denies climate change—being placed in charge of the Environmental Protection Agency; and Betsy DeVos, who heads the Department of Education in a country where the vast majority of students attend public schools. She has not “attended, worked in, or sent her children to public schools” but has actively spent her own money promoting a private alternative (Moynihan, 2018). How will these leaders motivate a civil service who believes government can be good stewards of federal land, improve the environment, and provide educational opportunities for all children?

The executive branch has not concretely presented a governmental reform agenda, but actions taken in the past 18 months outline changes to the federal workforce, such as hiring and pay freezes, and the efforts to fire executives, such as with the Veterans Administration. Public sector unions have been a major force in maintaining public sector pay and hiring; however, in May of this year, the president issued an Executive Order to curb federal staff protections and union powers. In the UK, “during the 2010–15 UK Coalition government, Minister for the Cabinet Office Francis Maude pushed departments to cut back on ‘facility time’: by 2015” (Early, 2018). Moynihan predicted “[f]rom a practical perspective, it would weaken a system of governing that has worked quite well for the US given the political antagonism it faces. We may witness a vast experiment about whether a highly politicized state that rapidly loses institutional capacity can still function” (Moynihan, 2017).

How does all this relate to public administration teaching and learning?

As the landscape changes for public servants, it will also influence what we research, and how that research informs what we teach in the field of public administration. As I have just outlined, Moynihan suggested several areas that will require [my emphasis on “will”] more research in an effort to prepare future public administration graduates. In a debate last year on the future of research and teaching public administration in the UK, Ian Elliott offered his university as an example where research is still alive and well and research concerning big data, citizen integration, and other pressing concerns is continuing (Liddle, 2017). Research that centers on the teaching of public administration is also vital.

I would suggest there are three general areas to scholarship in public administration teaching: pedagogical; academic administration in public administration programs; and, accrediting. Pedagogical research represents what we teach and how we teach it. Given the expected changes in government as I have previously alluded to, both in the US and UK, what we teach will be critical to ensuring MPA graduates are prepared to enter public service.

Changes in technology in the past decade have increased the need to understand how we teach, in both in class and online environments, and how students interact with their learning environment. A number of years ago, for-profit institutions used online instruction that reflected more of a correspondence course format. Public universities now offer entire degree programs online. In looking through the archives of Teaching Public Administration Conference research and presentations, online teaching has been one of the primary categories of interest. Instructors cannot just take an in class lecture and post it online and expect to get the same results as in class. One needs to understand how a learning management system works, the importance of instructional design in creating a quality experience for the student, how to manage and engage students, and ways to go beyond the lecture using other forms of media. Online students are increasingly using mobile apps to participate in class. Blackboard and Canvas, two prominent learning management systems, have created mobile apps for phones and tablets, where both instructors and students can work just about anywhere with an internet connection. This has resulted in a push for phased content that students can access in this manner, which translates to smaller bytes of information that can be easily accessed.

How we teach in class has also gone through changes. We are (or should be) moving from the traditional lecture towards an interactive approach to increase critical thinking and problem-solving skills, as research indicates that students do better with this type of instructional focus. Flipped classrooms, or flipped learning, requires students to complete required readings prior to class, and then work in class to apply relevant theories in a student-led situation (O’Flaherty and Phillips, 2015)

Another area of research is that dealing with the administration of MPA programs. This would include research focused on how to manage the program, how to deal with university administration, and how to effectively manage your student population. Accrediting issues also represent recent research efforts. Within the US, the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA), is the accrediting body for public administration programs. Research issues include how to navigate through the accrediting or reaccreditation process, the effect of accreditation on national standings, and determining whether the competencies advocated by NASPAA reflect what future public servants need to succeed, to list just a few.

Barriers to research

We have been successful in conducting pedagogical research, but I want to acknowledge some of the barriers we face. First, there is a lack of acceptance of this type of research. In both the US and UK, pedagogical research is not readily accepted as research that supports the field, and, in turn, a tenure and promotion package. While it may represent a peer-reviewed publication, it does not compare favorably with other types of research. For those who are pursuing tenure, or promotion, this type of research will not rank prominently in their research agenda.

There is also the push for more empirical evidence in pedagogical research. Using current classes as case studies is a convenient way to demonstrate a new approach to teaching a particular course, or the effects of using a case study, or portfolio; or highlighting issues in teaching online. While the information might be useful to those of us teaching public administration, employing a quantitative or qualitative or mixed-methods approach lends more credence to the findings and can result in publishable work.

There are more opportunities for publication of non-pedagogical research in public administration nationally and internationally; however, the field for pedagogical research specifically in the area of public administration is somewhat limited. Using Elsevier’s SCOPUS rankings of the top 50 public administration journals worldwide, not one is dedicated to public administration educational research (SCIMAGO, 2018). The opportunities for discussing teaching-related research is more readily available. The annual conferences of the Public Administration Council in the UK, Teaching Public Administration Conference in the US, and the European Group for Public Administration conference all offer opportunities for presenting research in the area of teaching. The Teaching Public Administration (TPA) Conference originally was initiated by instructors, for instructors, as an ad hoc group focused on improving teaching in public administration, and was formally adopted by the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) Section on Public Administration Education in 2012. Other national conferences, such the American Political Science Association (APSA) include a track on public administration education.

Views of the future

Where do we go from here? I am encouraged by the rise of international collaboration in both conferences, where we can bring together scholars from other countries, and journals, where we can gain insight on issues that reach across boundaries. This year, the UK journal Teaching Public Administration and the US Journal of Public Administration Education published a joint symposium on “Democracy and the Teaching of Public Administration” that highlight the importance of the teaching and learning of democratic values and ideas. I highly recommend you read the editorial in full as they capture the essence of what Diamond and Schultz describe as the attack on democracy. As to their view of the future, “We think that an active community of teachers/scholars/researchers working in our universities and colleges and engaging too in the processes of critical reflection on practice as well as anticipating developments or responding to new ways of thinking provides one site of resistance to the crisis in democracy” (Diamond and Schultz, 2018: 6).

The venue that provided this opportunity for collaboration was the TPA Conference in Columbus, Ohio in 2015. This was a first for both journals, and it should not be the last. It is important that we continue to provide opportunities for discussion and collaboration of both academics and practitioners, to advance the dialogue on the practice and teaching of public administration. I leave you today with a charge, to continue the scholarship of teaching and learning, to collaborate with international partners, and to practice the ideals that are espoused by public administrators.