Foundations of Public Policy

This course provides an overview of the concepts and issues at the heart of public administration: public policy. As Deborah Stone stated in Policy Paradox, “policy is the struggle over ideas and these ideas are the stuff of politics.” This course provides an introduction to the study of public policy processes and the practice of public policy analysis. By comparing and contrasting various approaches, we seek to provide guidance for future policy makers and policy analysts. To accomplish this, students will functionally critique policy designs by recognizing the social constructs and subjective limitations of policy creation, implementation, and evaluation.