Patricia S. Atkins is an associate research professor at the George Washington Institute of Public Policy, principally working on research related to state and local tax and fiscal policies. She was previously on the faculty at the University of Baltimore. At the Institute of Public Policy, she also regularly joins research projects focused upon regional economic resilience and interlocal collaboration of governmental services. Her research on urban and regional governance has been published in the Public Manager, Journal of Global Awareness, Public Administration Review, Review of Regional Studies, Journalism Quarterly, and other journals. Her edited book, with David Hamilton, Urban and Regional Policies for Metropolitan Livability was published in 2008. She received her Ph.D. in government and politics from the University of Maryland in 1984.
Robert L. Bland is professor of public administration at the University of North Texas where he served as department chair from 1992 to 2013. His research on public budgeting and finance has been published in Public Administration Review, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, State and Local Government Review, Journal of Financial Research, Public Budgeting and Finance, Journal of Urban Affairs and other journals. He has written four books including the widely used Budget Guide for Local Government that is in its 3rd edition. He received his Ph.D. in Public and International Affairs from the University of Pittsburgh in 1981.
Sanya Carley is assistant professor of public and environmental affairs at Indiana University where she also serves as a research member of the Richard G. Lugar Center for Renewable Energy. Her research on energy policy, sustainability, and economic development has been published in the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, Review of Policy Research, Energy Policy, Energy Economics, Environmental Science and Technology, Policy Studies Journal, Economic Development Quarterly and other journals. Her book, co-authored with Sara Lawrence, Energy-Based Economic Development: How Clean Energy can Drive Development and Stimulate Economic Growth will be published in 2014. She received her Ph.D. in public policy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2010.
Wes Clarke is a public service associate and program director of the Tax and Expenditure Data Center at the Carl Vinson Institute of Government at the University of Georgia. He was previously on the faculty of the Department of Public Administration at the University of North Texas. His research on public budgeting and finance has been published in Municipal Finance Journal, Journal of Urban Affairs, Public Budgeting and Finance, Legislative Studies Quarterly, Political Research Quarterly, Journal of Public Affairs Education, Journal of Forecasting and other scholarly publications. In addition, he has completed numerous research studies for the State of Georgia as well as Georgia local governments. His recent research projects have focused on state and local revenue policy, resource allocation, program evaluation, and economic impact analysis. Currently he is engaged in research on local government revenue system recovery following recessions, and the link between local government spending for education and economic development. He received his Ph.D. from the Martin School of Public Policy and Administration in 1995.
Ruth Hoogland DeHoog is professor of political science and director of the MPA program at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Her research on public sector contracting and service delivery, local government leadership, nonprofit management and other topics has been published in Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, Journal of Health and Human Services Administration, American Political Science Review, International Journal of Public Administration, Urban Affairs Quarterly, Journal of Urban Affairs, Public Administration Review, Administration and Society and other journals. She has also published two books. She received her Ph.D. in political science from Michigan State University in 1981.
Mark Funkhouser is director of the Governing Institute. He also serves as chair of the International Center for Performance Auditing. He previously served as mayor of Kansas City, Missouri from 2007 to 2011. In addition he has taught courses in public budgeting, public finance and other topics at the University of Kansas and the University of Missouri, Kansas City. He has received numerous awards including a lifetime achievement award from the Association of Local Government Auditors in 2007. His research has been published in Public Administration Review, Chinese Public Administration Review, The Journal of Government Financial Management, The Government Accountant’s Journal, and other publications. His book Honest, Competent Government: the Promise of Performance Auditing was published in 2009. He received his Ph.D. in public administration and sociology from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, in 2000.
Elisabeth R. Gerber is the Jack L. Walker Jr. Professor of Public Policy, University of Michigan. From 2001 to 2006 she served as director of the Center for Local, State, and Urban also at the University of Michigan. Her research on regionalism, direct democracy and legislative politics has been published in the American Journal of Political Science, American Political Science Review, Urban Studies, Journal of Politics, Political Research Quarterly, Political Behavior and many other journals. She has also published four books. In 2012, she was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She received her Ph.D. in political science from the University of Michigan in 1991.
W. Bartley Hildreth is professor public policy and management, and former dean, at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University. Previously at Wichita State University he was the Regents Distinguished Professor of Public Finance and also director of the Kansas Public Finance Center. His research on public budgeting and finance, public administration, and other topics has been published in Public Budgeting & Finance, National Tax Journal, Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting, and Financial Management, Public Administration Review, Journal of Public Administration Education, Government Finance Review, Public Performance and Management Review and other journals. He received the 2008 Aaron Wildavsky Award for lifetime scholarly achievement in public budgeting and financial management. He has written numerous books including Budgeting: Politics & Power (with Carol Lewis) that was published in its second edition in 2013. In 2012 he was elected as a fellow on the National Academy of Public Administration. He received his Ph.D. in Public Administration from the University of Georgia in 1979.
Melinda James Lopez is director of information management and reporting for the City of Hoover, Alabama. Her duties include overseeing the budget process, financial reporting and the city’s information systems, including GIS. In addition, she has been an adjunct professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. She is professionally very active and has served on the International City/County Management Association’s task force for Financing ICMA, and currently serves as the first vice president of the Government Finance Officers Association of Alabama. She also serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Alabama Power Employees Credit Union. She received her Ph.D. in public administration from Auburn University in 2013.
