Fall 2014
_______________________________________________________________________________
Professor: Dr. Dumont
Email: g.dumont@unf.edu
Office: 51/2112
Phone: (904) 620-5855
Class meets: Tuesdays, 3:05 – 4:20 in Skinner Hall South (Building 3), Room 1341
Also online on Blackboard (Bb)
Office hours: In office: Tuesdays 10:30 am – 2:30 pm, 4:30pm – 5:30 pm, and by appointment
On Skype: @GetteinJax (message me informing me who you are so I accept your request)
On Twitter: @GetteinJax
___________________________________________________________________________________
“Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think.”
– Albert Einstein
Course Summary
This course is designed as a broad introduction to public administration. Public administration differs
from many other areas in academia and political science in that it has a strong practical
component. Students will be introduced to both the theoretical and practical sides of public
administration. Among the topics we will cover this semester are major theories of management,
organizations, the policy process, and the relationship between politics and administration.
This is an intensive course in which a lot of material will be covered. The lectures and lecture notes will
be posted online and the case studies relating to the lectures will be discussed in class on Tuesdays.
To be prepared for the case study discussions, the readings will need to be completed and the lecture
watched before the class on Tuesday. In addition, students will be required to complete two papers, ten
online quizzes, a midterm, and a final exam.
Content (Quick links)
Professional Interactions
Course Objectives
Course Materials
Instruction/Learning Methods
Course Format
Lectures
Quizzes
Exams
Calculation of Grades
Class Schedule
Class Policies
Paper Rubric
Common Paper Mistakes
PAD 4003 Syllabus, Fall 2014
Page 1 of 12
Professional Interactions:
Be respectful and professional when you communicate with me, especially through email. Use
this general “professional rule” when you email anyone in a professional setting (anyone that is not your
friend or family member). General Rule: Use a greeting and address the person with their formal name
(based on education) and conclude with a closing and your full name. In a university setting, you should
address your instructors as “Dr.” or “Professor” and then last name. You can call me “Dr. Dumont” or
“Professor Dumont.” You should also always spell check, edit for grammar and punctuation, etc. I
suggest you use these guidelines for all of your courses at UNF and other professional experiences.
Additionally, your professors at UNF teach more than one course, so you should specify (either in the
subject or the body of the email), which course your question is in regard to.
Course Objectives
Upon completion of the course, students will have a general understanding of how to manage public
organizations, its complexities, and how it relates to politics, governing, and every day life. Specifically:
 Students should understand how public administration has developed and changed over time.
o Measurement: Midterm
 Students will know the key concepts in the field of public administration.
o Measurement: Midterm and Final
 Students will be able to identify the different between public administration and politics
(politicians v public administrators).
o Measurement: Paper 1
 Students will understand why bureaucratic organizations (public agencies and departments)
behave the way they do.
o Measurement: Paper 2
Students will also develop and hone skills throughout the course that will enable them to:
 Possess the verbal and writing skills needed to communicate clearly and effectively, make
persuasive, professional presentations and convey information essential to the discipline in an
orderly and understandable manner.
o Measurement: Class discussion & case studies
 Understand the various forms of structure in government and relate specific governmental forms
to political and policy outcomes.
o Measurement: Class papers
 Understand the principles of the rule of law and its effects on political relationships, actors,
institutions and policy.
o Measurement: Class papers
 Be able to effectively apply critical thinking and problem solving skills to political issues.
o Measurement: Case studies, tests
Course Materials
Required Course texts:
 Shafritz, J., E. Russell, and C. Borick, 2013. Introducing Public Administration, 8th ed. New York:
Pearson Longman. [Identified in syllabus as text]
 Shafritz, and J., E. Russell, 2011. Cases in Public Policy and Administration: From Ancient Times
to the Present. New York: Pearson Longman. [Identified in syllabus as cases]
PAD 4003 Syllabus, Fall 2014
Page 2 of 12
In addition to the texts, students are required to become familiar with Blackboard during the first week
of class. This site will be utilized for hosting lectures, important course announcements, student grades,
other course materials as well as a tool for you to communicate with your classmates and me through
email. Your papers will also be submitted through Blackboard. If you have any problems doing this,
please contact the ITS help desk.
As your student email account is the one I can contact you through using Blackboard, you need to make
sure that you can access that account. I am aware that many of you choose to use a different account,
but you will need to at the very least, have your student email forwarded to the email address you
normally use. If you do not know how to do this, please look into it.
Required Software:
 Access to Word (.doc or .docx). No other file types will be accepted.
 Regular, reliable Internet access using a current, standards-compliant Web browser such as
Firefox 3.0+ or Internet Explorer 7.0+, Javascript, and Flash. Click here to see the list of supported
browsers and operating systems.
Technology
ITS Help Desk - The ITS Help Desk is managed by Information Technology Services. The ITS Help
Desk takes phone calls, e-mails, and walk-ins from students, staff, and faculty. The HELP Desk may be
contacted for all technical Blackboard questions: login trouble, browser issues, error messages received,
etc.



Phone: 904-620-HELP (4357)
E-mail: helpdesk@unf.edu
On Campus: 2nd Floor of the Mathews Building down the hall from the Computer Lab (15/2106)
Please note that I cannot help you with technology issues. The only advice I have is to use a different
browser (preferable Firefox, from what I’ve been told). Other than that, contact the IT help desk.
Instruction / Learning Methods
This is a highly interactive course that incorporates various teaching media including the textbook,
lecture notes, online lectures, articles, videos, and class discussions. As with all university courses,
expect to dedicate about 9 hours of study per week into this course. The student-centered nature of
learning requires students to be actively involved with and take more responsibility for their own learning.
This hybrid course meets on Tuesdays, and students are expected complete the readings and to log onto
Blackboard at any other time to watch the lectures prior to the Tuesday class.
Course Format
Weekly Overview (visual)
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Weekly quiz
closes
Class
(case studies)
6:00 pm
3:05 pm
Assignment
Complete Readings and Watch Lectures
Papers due
on 9/28 and
11/9
Time due
Your leisure
6:00 pm
PAD 4003 Syllabus, Fall 2014
Page 3 of 12
Each week consists of a recorded lecture available on Blackboard and class discussions framed around
the week’s readings and case studies. There are also short weekly quizzes on the readings from
the text.
Lectures: Lectures are posted on Blackboard for each week. Students should have the readings
completed prior to the lecture. I will not review the readings, topic by topic, but I will expect you to
know them. Just because I do not discuss something in the lecture, it does not mean that it is not
important (there is not enough time to discuss everything that is important, nor do you want to
listen to me re-hash the readings).
Chapter Quizzes (100 points): Chapter quizzes will be available on Blackboard for each chapter until
6:00 PM on Monday. After that, the quiz will no longer be accessible. There are a total of 13
chapters that will be covered, and you will be expected to take ten of the quizzes. If you complete
more than 10, the lowest grades will be dropped until there is a total of 10 quizzes. For example, if
you complete all 13 quizzes, the lowest three grades will be dropped.
Papers (200 points; 100 points each): Students will be required to write two (2) papers, 2-3 pages in
length. The topics for each paper are noted in the class schedule section of the syllabus.
Each paper must have 1-inch margins, double-spaced text, and use 12-point Times New Roman
font. If you do not know how to format your paper in this way, please contact the IT Help desk.
Someone there will walk you through it. Remember: only Word Doc/docx files will be accepted.
Midterm and Final Exams (200 points; 100 points each): The midterm and final exams will be
administered in class. The format is short answers and essays. Please provide your own blue (or
green) book.
Calculation of Grades
Your grade in this course will consist of your performance on two exams (a midterm and a final exam),
two papers and ten chapter quizzes. The following is a breakdown of how the grades will be
determined:
Chapter quizzes (10 points each)
Midterm Exam
Papers (100 points each)
Final Exam
10%
10%
20%
10%
(100 points)
(100 points)
(200 points)
(100 points)
(500 points)
The grading scale is as follows:
A 470 – 500; A- 450-469
B+ 435 – 449; B 420 – 435; B- 400 - 419
C+ 385 – 399; C 350 – 384
D+ 335 – 349; D 300 – 334
F < 299
To calculate your grade, simply add the total points earned to determine how many more points you
need to get your desired grade.
PAD 4003 Syllabus, Fall 2014
Page 4 of 12
Class Schedule Overview: *
Week #
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
Week 6
Week 7
Week 8
Week 9
Week 10
Week 11
Week 12
Week 13
Week 14
Week 15
Week 16
Quiz
Class Date*
Chapter
Paper due
8/26/14
Introductions
yes
9/2/14
Chapter 1
yes
9/9/14
Chapter 2
yes
9/16/14
Chapter 3
yes
9/23/14
Chapter 4
yes
yes
9/30/14
Chapter 5
10/7/14
Midterm
yes
10/14/14
Chapter 6
yes
10/21/14
Chapter 7
yes
10/28/14
Chapter 8
yes
11/4/14
Chapter 9
yes
yes
11/11/14
Chapter 10
yes
11/18/14
Chapter 11
yes
11/25/14
Chapter 13
yes
12/2/14
Chapter 14
12/9/14
Final
* All weeks start on Wednesday and end on Tuesday,
so this date denotes the conclusion of the week.
Class Schedule Detail:
Week 1
Introduction / review syllabus and expectations
Syllabus and Blackboard overview
Week 2
Chapter 1: Defining Public Administration
Cases studies 1) Text, p 26 – 27; 2) Cases, p 11 – 22
Week 3
Chapter 2: Public Policy & Culture
Case studies 1) Text, p 67 – 69; 2) Cases, p 35 – 41
Week 4
Chapter 3: Machinery of Gov’t (aka Reinvention)
Case studies 1) Cases, p 42 – 53; 2) Cases, p 55 – 68
Week 5
Chapter 4: Intergovernmental Relations
Case studies 1) Text, p 159 – 161; 2) Cases, p 70 – 78
Week 6
Chapter 5: Ethics and Accountability
Case studies 1) Text, p 195 – 200
PAD 4003 Syllabus, Fall 2014
Page 5 of 12
Paper 1: How do public administrators differ from politicians? How do administrators in public
organizations differ from administrators in private organizations? Provide examples and use material
covered in chapters 1-4 to support your argument. This assignment is due prior to noon on Sunday.
Week 7
Midterm – in class
Week 8
Chapter 6: Management and Org Theory
Case studies 1) Text, p 234 – 237; 2) Cases, p 114 – 123
Week 9
Chapter 7: Organizational Behavior
Case studies 1) Text, p 276 – 278; 2) Cases, p 132 – 138
Week 10
Chapter 8: Managerialsm and IT
Case studies 1) Text, p 316 – 319; 2) Cases, p 139 – 145
Week 11
Chapter 9: Strategic Management and Reg.
Case studies 1) Text, p 349 – 352; 2) Cases, p 167 – 177
Paper 2 due: Bureaucratic organizations behave the way they do, in large part, because of their
structure. Specifically, public agencies tend not to be agile or move quickly. Why is this?
Use materials from chapters 6-8 to support your argument.
Remember: do not do any “bureaucrat bashing”! Most public employees do their best to serve the
public as best they can given the constraint they work in discussed in this module.
Week 12
Chapter 10: Leadership
Case studies 1) Text, 374 – 377; 2) Cases 179-189
Week 13
Chapter 11: Personnel
Case studies 1) Text, p 420 – 425; Cases, 200-210
Week 14
Chapter 13: Public Finances
Case studies 1) Text, p. 505 – 508; 2) Cases, p 237 – 240
Week 15
Chapter 14: Program Audit & Evaluation
Case studies 1) Cases, p 260 – 270
Week 16
Final Exam – Tuesday: 3:00 – 4:50pm
* I reserve the right to make changes and adjust the schedule as needed.
PAD 4003 Syllabus, Fall 2014
Page 6 of 12
Class Policies
Attendance: You are expected to attend class on regular basis. This class meets once a week, and
during this time, we will be forming into groups and working on the assigned case studies. The midterm
and final will include the case studies, and the solutions discussed in class.
If you need any more clarification, please let me know.
Decorum: I expect professional decorum at all times. I expect all students to show each other respect
and debate in a professional manner. Ad hominems are NOT allowed. This is a class about public
issues and, at times, emotional issues will be discussed. Public policy is intimately intertwined with
these issues. I will not tolerate students attacking each other, verbally or otherwise, over their views.
Perspectives, and others’ responses to them, need to be based on data, not ideology or beliefs. If you
do not know the data, research it before class and be ready to provide the source of the data (e.g.
census bureau, textbook, etc.). This extends to all forms of communication, including but not limited to,
face-to-face, email, video, and social media.
Late assignments/make-up exams: I do not accept late work. If you have a situation that requires an
exception, you must notify me well in advance for consideration. Late papers will be penalized by
having one letter grade deducted for every day it is late from the original due date.
Recordings: You are not allowed to record lectures without my prior written approval.
Extra Credit: I do not offer extra credit.
Communication: My contact is listed at the beginning of the syllabus. Please note that I am not on the
computer every minute of the day. When emailing me, you can expect a response within 24-hours,
Monday through Friday. I make every attempt I can to NOT be online on weekends. That said, it is best
to contact me during the week with any questions.
Academic Dishonesty: Cheating, through any means, will not be tolerated in this course. You are not
only cheating yourself (any wasting your money), it is unfair to students who do not seek an ‘easy’ way
to obtain their desired grade. The followings statements are from UNF’s Catalog
(http://www.unf.edu/catalog/catalog.aspx?id=15032403681).
Course Content
A course may deal with subjects, issues, or perspectives to which some might object. Such
objections will not exempt a student from course requirements. The University of North
Florida stands behind the right of its instructors to include material that is challenging in any
number of ways. The faculty urges students to discuss any concerns they might have
concerning the content of their courses with their instructors.
Claiming One’s Own Work
Each student is honor-bound to submit under his or her name or signature only his or her
own work; to fully acknowledge his or her use of any information, ideas, or other matter
belonging to someone else, and to properly document the source in question; and to offer for
credit only that work which he or she has completed in relation to the current course.
PAD 4003 Syllabus, Fall 2014
Page 7 of 12
Violations of Academic Integrity
Under this heading the University of North Florida Student Handbook identifies several types
of violations; these include but are not limited to: cheating; fabricating and falsifying
information or citations; submitting the same work for credit in more than one course;
plagiarizing; providing another student with access to one’s own work to submit under this
person’s name or signature; destroying, stealing, or making inaccessible library or other
academic resource material; and helping or attempting to help another person commit an act
of academic dishonesty. The University of North Florida authorizes any instructor who finds
evidence of cheating, plagiarism, or other wrongful behavior that violates the University of
North Florida Academic Integrity Code to take appropriate action. Possible action includes,
but is not limited to, failing the student on the work in question, failing the student for the
course, notifying the appropriate academic dean or Vice President for Student Affairs, and
requesting additional action be taken.
The consequences of a breach of academic integrity may result in an F, which is
unforgivable, regardless of withdrawal status. To view the Student Handbook, click here.
To ensure equity in the grading process, I make every effort to catch students who are being dishonest.
Odds are I will catch you.
Disabilities: Students with disabilities who seek reasonable accommodations in the classroom or other
aspects of performing their coursework must first register with the UNF Disability Resource Center
(DRC) located in the College of Education and Human Resources (Building 57), Room 1500. DRC staff
members work with students to obtain required documentation of disability and to identify appropriate
accommodations as required by applicable disability laws including the Americans with Disabilities Act
(ADA). After receiving all necessary documentation, the DRC staff determines whether a student
qualifies for services with the DRC and if so, the accommodations the student requires will be
provided. DRC staff then prepares a letter for the student to provide faculty advising them of approved
accommodations. Military and veteran students who return from combat exposure may be utilizing the
post 9/11 GI bill to continue postsecondary education goals. For further information, contact the DRC by
phone (904) 620-2769, email (drc@unf.edu), or visit the DRC website (http://www.unf.edu/dept/disabledservices).
Military and veteran students may need both physical and academic accommodations. Contact Ray
Wikstrom, Director of Military and Veterans’ Resource Center by phone (904) 620-2655, or by email at
ray.wikstrom@unf.edu. You can also visit their website at: http://www.unf.edu/military-veterans/.
Obligations: I expect you to be in class on time and prepared. This means to make sure you have
completed the readings before the discussion. You should be ready to answer questions about the
chapter, case studies (in the chapter and the cases text), and current affairs. If you have any questions
or concerns, please let me know. I will make myself available to help you outside of class or office hour
times if necessary.
Class Papers: There are two (2) 2-3 page papers for this class. These papers will be due prior to 6:00
PM on Sunday the week the assignment is due, which is noted in the Class Schedule section of the
syllabus. As noted above, it will not be accepted if uploaded late. Please note, the class week starts on
Wednesday and ends on Tuesday with the class discussion. More detailed information is below.
PAD 4003 Syllabus, Fall 2014
Page 8 of 12
Department of Political Science and Public Administration website: Students are strongly
encouraged to visit the political science department’s website for information. This site is up-to-date with
information that will assist students in contacting faculty and staff, exploring graduate studies,
researching career options, and accessing important details related to undergraduate programs and
activities. For important information on the Department of Political Science and Public Administration,
please visit: http://www.unf.edu/coas/pspa/
The Department of Political Science and Public Administration also has a Facebook page
(https://www.facebook.com/UNFPSPA?ref=ts&fref=ts) and a Twitter account: @UNFPSPA
(https://twitter.com/UNFPSPA). If you use these mediums, please like or follow the department to
receive updated information and opportunities.
Professor Responsibilities:
 I will review and respond to email messages daily. You should have an email response within
24-48 hours. Friday at 5pm will be the last time I check my email. If you do not hear from me
within 48 hours, email me, call me, or Tweet me to let me know you are trying to get in touch
with me. There are times when student emails go into my junk folder.
 I will not extend a due date for a student regardless of personal, health, or technical
issues. I have an ethical obligation to follow the printed policies to maintain a
fair/consistent learning environment for every student.
 For consistency, I will review and grade all students’ papers after the due date. I will grade
all student work on the same day. I will not check or grade work before the deadline.
 Quizzes will be graded immediately through Bb.
 I will provide you with detailed feedback on your papers. Check through “my grades.”
 I will notify students of any changes or updates in the course through ANNOUNCEMENTS. I
will also detail updates in the syllabus with dates of the updates under the syllabus document
in COURSE DOCUMENTS.
 I will use the ANNOUNCEMENTS function on Bb to regularly communicate and provide
additional resources and information as they become available.
 I will provide evaluation criteria and specific directions for all course assignments (in this
syllabus).
 I will provide the lecture handouts to compliment and add to the chapters and augment
learning. (Note: The lecture slides are NOT enough to pass quizzes or complete the
discussions and exams.)
 I will be available for online office hours daily via Skype. I’m also available in person during my
office hours. If you cannot make my office hours and need to speak with me in person, I am
always willing to work around your schedule. I welcome the opportunity to help you!
PAD 4003 Syllabus, Fall 2014
Page 9 of 12
Paper Rubric
Your papers should follow these guidelines:
o Identify the issue/state the question (5 points)
o Content (40 points)
o Write professionally (30 points)
o Cite sources in text, correctly (15 points)
o Follow instructions/feedback (10 points)
_____________________




Identify the issue/state the question, main theme, etc.
o Avoid the 'mystery novel' approach to professional writing. Tell your reader in the first
paragraph, if not the first line, what the paper seeks to do. Do this as clearly as possible,
with a "This paper will..." statement, if necessary.
Content
o Note that the likelihood of misinterpreting what you've read (or falling for a particularly
biased, distorted take on an issue) is inversely related to the amount of reading you do.
o Note that this is a class about public administration, not the management of private
companies.
Write professionally
o Write for an informed layperson on the street, rather than for experts, idiots, or your class
teacher.
o Use quotations sparingly. This is meant to be a paper by you, not a collection of selected
quotes that you thought were especially relevant to the topic.
o Use a professional tone. Don't force it. Some pet hates (this WILL lose you
points!!!!):
 Use third person; don't use first person (e.g. I, we, our), or second person
(you). You are not writing this from yourself, you are writing it on behalf of an
organization, to an impersonal audience.
 Don't use contractions (e.g. don't).
 Avoid rhetorical questions (e.g. Why is this the case?).
 Avoid starting a sentence with a conjunction (e.g. The paper was bad. And she
started a sentence with and.).
 Avoid singular/plural inconsistency (e.g. The student lost points for singular/plural
consistency in their paper).
Cite sources correctly, in text and in the bibliography
o EVERY paper must include course readings.
o Please use APA. Key points:
 Sources must be retrievable. Given the in-text citation, your reader should be
able to go directly to the appropriate full citation in your list of works cited (or
bibliography), and from this to the page (though this is sometimes tricky with web
sites) of the document from which you got the information.
 This means that if you cite something as (Smith 2000) in the narrative, the
source should be listed alphabetically under Smith in the list of works cited.
 Do not cite urls in text.
 Note that you must have a proper list of works cited.
 Everything cited in text must be in this list of works cited; anything
not cited in text should not be in this list of works cited.
 Bibliographic references should be informative on their own. Listing a URL is not
enough, as your reader should be able to get some idea where the information is
from, so that s/he does not have to go to the source to get some idea of credibility.
PAD 4003 Syllabus, Fall 2014
Page 10 of 12




You don't need a quotation in order to include a citation.
Note, again, the admonishment against plagiarism, and consult UNFs Academic
Honesty Policy. If you are caught plagiarizing, you will fail the assignment, and
possibly the class!
Follow instructions & formatting
o Pay attention to the various course requirements.
o Especially note UNF’s Academic Integrity Policy.
Not addressing feedback (debits)
o I take a lot of time to provide you with detailed feedback. If you make the same mistakes
in a subsequent paper, you will loose points. The more times you make the mistakes, the
more points you lose.
Rubric (visual)
PAD 4003 Syllabus, Fall 2014
Page 11 of 12
Common Comments on Past Papers (don’t do these things)
I have found that I have had to repeatedly use the same comments over and over again on student
papers. To avoid having to keep repeating this, below is a list of comments addressing common
mistakes that are made on student papers. Please read through each, and follow the link for more
clarification. The links are pretty fun, so I would follow them to see where they go...
Grammar
 [Restrictive versus unrestrictive clauses. Here is a great link when and how to use which v that:
http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/which-versus-that.aspx]
 [Improper semi colon use. See http://theoatmeal.com/comics/semicolon for a good (and
humorous) summary]
 [Use ‘who’ when referring to people and use ‘that’ when referring to things. Here is a link that
goes into more detail: http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/who-versus-that.aspx]
 [Wrong form. They’re v there v their. See http://englishplus.com/grammar/00000256.htm]
 [Here is a great link on when to use affect v effect: http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/affectversus-effect.aspx]
 [Here is a good link for when to use ‘a’ and when to use ‘an’:
http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/a-versus-an.aspx]
 [Pronouns refer to the noun that immediately precedes them. See
http://www.grammarbook.com/grammar/pronoun.asp]
 [Spell out single digit numbers. Here is a good link about writing numbers:
http://www.grammarbook.com/numbers/numbers.asp]
Professional Writing
 [Don’t use first person. See syllabus]
 [Do not use contractions. See syllabus.]
 [Too informal for a professional paper]
 [Only capitalize formal names and titles]
 [Avoid rhetorical questions. See syllabus.]
 [Spelling – proofread!]
Citing
 [When the information can be found in in the text, cite the text, not me.]
 [Include all the authors of a book. If more than three, use the first author’s last name followed by
‘et al. (year).’]
 [When citing from an edited book, you must use the author of the chapter’s name, not the editor.]
 [See APA on how to cite from edited volumes in text and the works cited section.]
 [You must include the page number whenever using a direct quote.]
 [Citations must go within the sentence. See syllabus.]
 [Authors’ names must go in the order that they are listed on the book or article.]
 [There are no in-text citations. You need to let the reader know where you are getting the
information.]
 [Do not use book titles in text. See syllabus.]
Formatting/ Following directions
 Times New Roman, 12 point font
 1 inch margins
PAD 4003 Syllabus, Fall 2014
Page 12 of 12