Teaching Intergovernmental Relations and Management

Abstract

Courses on intergovernmental relations are included in many graduate programs in public administration, but little has been done to assess the content of intergovernmental education. This article reports and analyzes the results of a 1994 survey of the 114 public administration programs accredited by the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA). Content analysis of course syllabi was used to discover, in addition to the mechanics of course format (texts, exams, papers, etc.), the topics covered in intergovernmental courses and the extent to which the techniques of intergovernmental management are included along with institutional structures and fiscal relationships. Relatively little attention is given to the management dimension of intergovernmentalism in the NASPAA-school programs; the article focuses on how this dimension is taught and what can be done to strengthen this important part of graduate intergovernmentalism.

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