School of Government
www.sog.unc.edu
MICHAEL R. SMITH, Dean
Professors
David N. Ammons, Albert Coates Distinguished Professor of Public Administration and
Government. Public Administration
Maureen M. Berner, Public Administration, Program Evaluation
Frayda S. Bluestein, David Lawrence Distinguished Professor, Local Government Law,
Associate Dean for Faculty Development
John Michael Crowell, Public Law and Government
James C. Drennan, Courts Law and Judicial Administration
Joseph S. Ferrell, Property Tax Law, Secretary of the Faculty (Retired)
Cheryl D. Howell, Albert Coates Distinguished Professor of Public Law and Government.
Judicial Education and Administration
Robert P. Joyce, Charles Edwin Hinsdale Distinguished Professor of Public Law and
Government. Education Law
Diane M. Juffras, Employment Law
David W. Owens, Gladys Hall Coates Distinguished Professor of Public Law and Government.
Environmental and Land Use Law
William C. Rivenbark, Public Administration
John Rubin, Albert Coates Distinguished Professor of Law and Government. Criminal Law and
Procedure
Jessica Smith, W. R. Kenan Jr. Distinguished Professor of Public Law and Government.
Criminal Law and Procedure
Michael R. Smith, Dean
Carl W. Stenberg III, James E. Holshouser Jr. Distinguished Professor, Public Administration
Charles Szypszak, Real Estate Law
Thomas H. Thornburg, Criminal Law, Senior Associate Dean
Richard B. Whisnant, Gladys Hall Coates Distinguished Professor of Public Law and Policy,
Environmental Law
Associate Professors
Mark F. Botts, Mental Health Law
Leisha Dehart-Davis, Public Management and Organization Development
Shea R. Denning, Property Tax Law
Richard D. Ducker, Land Use Law (Retired)
Willow S. Jacobson, Human Resource Management and Organizational Theory
Kara Millonzi, Local Government and Finance
Jill D. Moore, Public Health Law
Jonathan Q. Morgan, Economic Development
Ricardo S. Morse, Public Administration
Christopher Tyler Mulligan, Community and Economic Development
Kim L. Nelson, Local Government Management
John B. Stephens, Inter-Agency and Public Policy Dispute Resolution
Aimee N. Wall, Thomas Willis Lambeth Distinguished Chair in Public Policy, Legislative
Education and Social Services Law
Jeff Welty, Albert and Gladys Hall Coates Distinguished Associate Professor of Public Law and
Government. Criminal Law
Assistant Professors
Whitney Afonso, Local Government Budgeting and Finance
Trey Allen, Local Government Law
Ann Anderson, Courts and Estate Law
Sara DePasquale, Juvenile Law
Adam S. Lovelady, Land Use Law and Planning
James Markham, Criminal Law
Christopher B. McLaughlin, Albert and Gladys Hall Coates Distinguished Assistant Professor of
Public Law and Government, Tax Law
LaToya Powell, Juvenile Law
Meredith Smith, Clerks of Court
Shannon Tufts, Albert and Gladys Hall Coates Distinguished Assistant Professor and Director,
Center for Public Technology
Senior Lecturer
Gregory S. Allison, Governmental Accounting and Financial Reporting
Lecturers
Alyson A. Grine, Albert and Gladys Hall Coates Distinguished Term Lecturer. Social Services
Law
Norma Houston, Public Law and Government
Jeffrey A. Hughes, Albert and Gladys Hall Coates Distinguished Term Lecturer. Environmental
Services and Programs
Dona Lewandowski, Public Law and Government
Margaret Henderson, Nonprofit Management
Dale Roenigk, Performance Measurement and Public Administration
Vaughn Upshaw, Public Governance
Adjunct and Visiting Faculty
Monica Allen, Adjunct Instructor
Julie M. Brenman, Adjunct Instructor
Marguerite Creel, Adjunct Instructor
Teresa Derrick-Mills, Adjunct Instructor
Robert Farb, Adjunct Professor
Casey Fleming, Adjunct Instructor
Andrew George, Adjunct Instructor
Paula Quick Hall, Adjunct Instructor
Ellis Hankins, Adjunct Instructor
Claire Horne, Adjunct Instructor
Michele Hoyman, Adjunct Professor
David M. Lawrence, Adjunct Professor (Retired)
Janet Mason, Adjunct Professor (Retired)
Todd Nicolet, Adjunct Instructor
Kelley O'Brien, Adjunct Instructor
Amy Strecker, Adjunct Instructor
James Svara, Visiting Professor
Joseph Vrabel, Adjunct Instructor
Amy Wade, Adjunct Instructor
The School of Government (www.sog.unc.edu) was established at UNC–Chapel Hill in 1931 as
the Institute of Government. The SOG has long focused on state and local government in the
broader study of government, public law, public finance, and public administration. Today, it is
the nation's leading university-based provider of instructional and advisory services to state and
local government practitioners. Through instructional programs, advising, research, and
publishing, the SOG advances general understanding about government and shares that
information with practitioners and other scholars. The SOG offers a program of courses leading
to the master of public administration (M.P.A.) degree.
Master of Public Administration (M.P.A.) Degree Program
William C. Rivenbark, Director
M.P.A. Program Teaching Faculty
Afonso; Allen; Allison; Ammons; Berner; Brenman; Creel; Dehart-Davis; Derrick-Mills;
Fleming; George; Hall; Hankins; Henderson; Horne; Hoyman–Department of Political Science;
Hughes; Jacobson; Millonzi; Morgan; Morse; Mulligan; Nelson; Nicolet; O'Brien; Rivenbark;
Roenigk; Stenberg; Stephens; Strecker; Szypszak; Tufts, and Wade.
Program Overview
The School of Government offers the M.P.A. degree. Rated among the among the nation's best,
the mission of the M.P.A. program is to prepare public service leaders. In pursing this mission,
the program offers a curriculum that helps students reach their potential for leadership through
rigorous academic study and practical experience. In January 2013, the School began offering
the M.P.A. program in an online format. MPA@UNC is designed for working professionals and
others who aspire to become public service leaders but require the flexibility of an online format.
Accredited by the Network Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration, the
M.P.A. program has produced graduates serving in governmental and nonprofit organizations. In
local government, alumni serve as city and county managers, budget and finance directors,
personnel directors, and in other administrative positions. In state government, alumni serve in
management and staff positions in policy planning, finance and management, personnel, water
resources, health services, education, and other areas. Alumni serve as administrators and
analysts in a variety of agencies at the federal level, including the Office of Management and
Budget, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Health and Human Services,
the Department of Labor, the Government Accountability Office, and on Senate and House
committee staffs. In the nonprofit sector, M.P.A. alumni administer programs in the arts,
education, economic development, and human services.
More information is available on the Web at www.mpa.unc.edu.
Admission Requirements
The M.P.A. program welcomes applicants from diverse backgrounds. For example, while many
of our applicants are from the social sciences, other applicants have undergraduate majors in
architecture, business administration, engineering, English, history, industrial relations, and
many other fields.
The requirements for admissions are
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Bachelor's degree
A recommended grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher
Minimum of three semester hours of credit in American government and politics (this is
not a requirement to apply for admission, but would need to be completed prior to the
first day of fall classes if offered admission)
A recommended score that is at or greater than the 50th percentile for both the verbal and
quantitative sections of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE)
A purpose statement
Three letters of recommendation
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Oral interview with the M.P.A. admissions committee
All admissions decisions are made during the spring for fall semester matriculation into the
residential format. Applications must meet the deadlines of The Graduate School. Admissions
decisions for MPA@UNC are made during three terms; fall matriculation decisions are made in
the summer, spring matriculation decisions are made in the fall, and summer matriculation
decisions are made in the spring.
Financial Aid
The M.P.A. program provides financial assistance to many of its students. Research
assistantships and scholarships are available to top candidates. Students also become involved in
School of Government projects or work in governmental or nonprofit organizations as graduate
assistants. MPA@UNC may also provide fellowships to top candidates.
Course Work and Degree Requirements
A minimum of 45 semester hours of credit, an internship, a portfolio, and a final oral
examination are required for the M.P.A. These requirements are designed to ensure that each
graduate possesses the core set of competences that supports the M.P.A. program's mission of
preparing public service leaders.
Core course requirements are:
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Public Administration Institutions and Values (3)
Organization Theory (3)
Public Service Leadership (3)
Public Administration Evaluation and Analysis I (3)
Public Administration Evaluation and Analysis II (3)
Professional Communications (3)
Human Resource Management (3)
Public Financial Management (3)
Law for Public Administration (3)
Professional Work Experience (1.5)
M.P.A. Portfolio (1.5)
In addition to the core course requirements, each student completes 15 semester hours of elective
courses.
Courses for Graduate and Advanced Undergraduate Students