Wondering how society might mitigate climate change, eliminate poverty, address immigration, or provide affordable health care? Our Public Policy AOC is ideal for students who want to acquire the skills to analyze policy and policymaking and be an effective agent of change.
About the Public Policy Area of Concentration
Students declare Public Policy as a special AOC and work with a faculty mentor to design a plan of study that matches their specific interests and goals. The AOC is an interdisciplinary program designed to provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to address the major public policy issues facing society. The goal is to allow students to examine policy problems within a non-partisan, objective framework, and to formulate effective policy solutions to such problems. Policy issues are inherently multi-faceted, and, as a result, require an array of analytical tools to understand. Economic factors and the political process are fundamental to policy issues, and thus the disciplines of political science and economics constitute the core of the Public Policy AOC.
Beyond the courses and tutorials students plan with their mentors, many of our students complete internships or work in organizations to gain the experience needed not only to understand but also to participate in the policy process. Each student’s program of study culminates in a senior project under close guidance of a faculty member. Our program is particularly useful to students who wish to go into government service, law, nonprofit advocacy, the private sector in a policy-heavy field, journalism, and graduate school.
Featured Course
POLS 2100
Introduction to American Politics
This course serves as an introduction to the systematic and rigorous study of American politics. We develop an understanding of the forces that influence the behavior of individuals and institutions in and around national government. How well does the American political system live up to the ideals of a representative democracy? Answering this question means that we need to know something about how it is supposed to work, where it fails to measure up, and why. This will put us in a position to evaluate proposals for reforming the system as well as defenses of the status quo. Topics include the Federalist papers, the Constitution, participation and voting behavior, elections and representation, political parties and interest groups, congress, the Presidency, the judiciary, the bureaucracy, and the formation of public policy.
Recent Courses
- Introductory Microeconomics
- Introductory Macroeconomics
- Public Finance – Government Expenditures
- Public Finance – Taxation
- Introduction to American Politics
- Power and Public Policy
Career Pathways
- Urban Planning
- Social Services
- Communications
- Diplomacy
- Law
- Politics
- Nonprofit Administration
Pre-Law Program
In an effort to share valuable resources and create strong connections between students, the pre-law program is designed for students interested in pursuing a legal career.
Contact Us
Social Sciences Division
Phone Number
Email Address
Location
Social Science 102
Social Science 102
Working Hours
M – F
9 – 5
Public Policy Faculty
Tracy Collins
Associate Professor of Economics
Sarah Hernandez
Associate Professor of Sociology & Caribbean and Latin American Studies
Co-Director of the Initiative on Diversity and Equity in Academics
Barbara Hicks
Social Science Division Chair
Professor of Political Science
Dr. Tarron Khemraj
Professor of Economics and International Studies
William and Marie Selby Chair
Dr. Jack Reilly
Associate Professor of Political Science