Monday, August 22, 2011

Welcome Back to School: What you missed during the summer

This Week’s Big Issue

With the start of the academic year, I want to welcome everyone back to campus. The faculty in the school of public and environmental affairs have been hard at work on a number of fascinating research projects.

While the size and scope of these efforts are too numerous to capture in this blog entry, here are a few highlights:

Dr. Kristin Seefeldt received a research award from the Russell Sage Foundation. The $72,583 grant will be used toward the project “Recessionary Events and their Relationship to Health: Evidence from the Michigan Recession and Recovery Study.” Dr. Seefeldt will be working with the University of Michigan’s Sarah Burgard on the project, which will look at what negative events (e.g., job and housing loss, debt) the study survey respondents experienced and how and how often these events were experienced – as well as whether or not negative events or clusters of events are related to aspects of health and mental health.

Dr. Brad Heim recently published several important public finance articles. Co-authored with Ithai Z. Lurie, “The Effect of Self-employed Health Insurance Subsidies on Self-employment” was published in the Journal of Public Economics, and examines the extent to which making the cost of health insurance more favorable for the self-employed through changes in the tax code increases the level of self-employment in the United States. “How Does Charitable Giving Respond to Incentives and Income? New Estimates from Panel Data,” co-authored with Jon Bakija, was published in National Tax Journal, and offers evidence that taxpayers respond significantly to persistent changes in the after-tax price of giving to charity, with estimates implying that a one percent decrease in the price of giving leads to a greater than one percent increase in charitable donations. In addition, taxpayers change their charitable donations in advance in response to large obvious future changes in federal marginal tax rates, though there is less conclusive evidence of a response to more subtle sources of future price changes.

Dr. William (Bill) Resh will be accepting the 2011 Paul A. Volcker Junior Scholar Research Award from the American Political Science Association (APSA) at its annual meeting being held September 1-4 in Seattle, Washington. The Volcker Award is a competitive research grant that is given annually to a junior scholar whose work shows “potential to shed new light on important public administration questions and promise for advancing practice and theory development.”

Dr. Jennifer Brass had two papers accepted for publication. Based on her ongoing research on non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Kenya, Dr. Brass examines significant political aspects behind NGO policy and governance. In “Why Do NGOs Go Where They Go? Evidence from Kenya,” forthcoming in World Development, she argues that NGOs chose locations within a country in which to work based on objective need and the ease of accessing needy people, not for political reasons. Contrary to dominant theories of African political economy, political factors like patronage appear to have little or no significant influence. In “Blurring Boundaries: The Integration of NGOs into Governance in Kenya,” forthcoming in Governance, Dr. Brass argues that NGOs are increasingly involved in the public service provision in Kenya, and that because of it, African public management is very slowly becoming more democratic.

Dr. Jeff White is Co-Principal Investigator on a team of IUB scientists who recently received a $2.4 million grant from NASA’s Astrobiology Science and Technology for Exploring Planets (ASTEP) program. The project, “Measuring Greenland Emissions of Trace Gases as an Analogue for Methane on Mars,” will include field research in Greenland, which contains environments that mimic, in some ways, the places NASA expects to explore for evidence of extraterrestrial life on Mars. A key aspect of the ASTEP program is to link astrobiology research to important areas of Earth science. Dr. White will focus on the measurement of greenhouse gases released from rapidly melting permafrost environments along the edge of the receding Greenland ice sheet. You can read more about the project at http://www.indiana.edu/~spea/research/white_nasa_project.shtml. Dr. White isalso serving as a Co-Principal Investigator for the project “Using Metagenomics and Traditional Ecological Approaches to Assess the Effects of Mycorrhizal Fungal Community Dynamics on Plant Productivity in Warming Boreal Peatlands in Alaska,” a $78,314 research grant

Dr. John Mikesell, whose paper, “The Property Tax in the Largest American Cities during the Great Recession: Instability and Collectability Issues for a Normally Reliable Revenue Source,” was recently selected as the 2011 Best Manuscript by the Public Finance and Budgeting (PFB) section of the WesternSocial Science Association (WSSA). Dr. Mikesell presented his paper at WSSA’s 53rd Annual Conference held in Salt Lake City, Utah, during the PFB panel on “Tax Policy and its Effects.” In addition to a cash prize from PRAcademics Press, the publisher of the Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management (JPBAFM), the winning manuscript will be submitted for possible publication in JPBAFM. In choosing Dr. Mikesell’s piece for the award, the award committee commended it as “timely, informative, and well-written.”

Dr. David Audretsch testified before the Congressional Committee on Small Businesses. His remarks focus on public policy strategies for supporting economic innovation as a means of generating economic growth. His remarks can be found at

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THMe_0KO6CU&feature=relmfu

Note: His remarks are in the middle of this youtube video

What’s Happening in SPEA Bloomington?

SPEA-Bloomington faculty recently launched a new research working paper series. To learn more about this new initiative and research being conducted by many SPEA faculty, please visit: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/JELJOUR_Results.cfm?form_name=journalbrowse&journal_id=1754224

SPEA’s Big Number

The percentage of SPEA net revenue for fiscal year 2010-11 that comes from student tuition: 83 percent.

Shout-Out to SPEA Bloomington

Please join me in congratulating SPEA MPA students, Katherine LeBeau, Chloie Favinger, Sharayah Gilbert, and Miranda Hutten on being named a 2011 Presidential Management Fellows (PMF) Finalist. PMF is considered to be one of the most prestigious and selective programs offered by the federal government for graduate students who have an interest in public service. This rigorous leadership program recruits outstanding graduate students for a two-year developmental fellowship with various federal agencies. These students truly represent the best and the brightest in being extended the distinction of PMF Finalists.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Faculty Assessment

This Week’s Big Issue

How are SPEA Bloomington full-time faculty members assessed and held accountable for their annual job performance? These are questions I frequently receive from students and staff (as well as some relatively new faculty members). These questions sometimes accompany misconceptions that faculty members do not face rigorous annual reviews and assessments.

The process for reviewing full-time SPEA Bloomington faculty starts with the annual faculty review. Each faculty member is required to submit a detailed annual report on their activities and performance in three areas: Research, teaching and service. These reports are reviewed by a Personnel Committee (a group of full-time faculty appointed by the Dean) and are supplemented by reports from SPEA’s four program directors on the performance of each faculty member. Program directors use student course evaluations, among sources of information on classroom performance, to shape their input on individual faculty performance. The Personnel Committee reviews these documents and uses them to write a report on the performance of the faculty member in the prior year. A faculty member is scored in each of the three areas on the following scale: Excellent, Very Good, Good, Satisfactory, and Unsatisfactory. The Personnel Committee approves these reports and submits them to the Dean’s Office. The Personnel Committee reports are passed back to individual faculty members and each faculty member has an opportunity to seek corrections. If a factual error has been made in the final draft report, then a correction is made. Otherwise, the reports are finalized and become a part of the faculty member’s personnel file. All untenured faculty are required to meet face-to-face with the Dean’s Office to discuss their annual performance. Tenured faculty are given the opportunity to meet with the Dean’s Office to discuss their assessment. This assessment process of faculty performance drives decisions on compensation.

The annual review process is an essential part of faculty development and is linked to our faculty mentoring program. Junior faculty members are matched with senior faculty mentors. Faculty mentors work with their colleagues to address areas that have been identified as weaknesses in their annual faculty reviews, while providing support and guidance on ways to strengthen scholarly activity, improve pedagogical methods, and identify high-impact service activities.

The annual review process in SPEA is rigorous and comprehensive. The School spends considerable time and effort to make sure we are rewarding those colleagues with outstanding accomplishments in research, teaching and service, while holding faculty members accountable for not performing as expected.

What’s Happening in SPEA Bloomington?

The School of Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA) will be celebrating National Peace Corps Week from February 28th to March 4th, with a special emphasis on Peace Corps’ 50th Anniversary. In collaboration with the Chicago Regional Office for Peace Corps, SPEA will be hosting a week-long series of information sessions, class talks, and networking possibilities. The week will culminate with a great event - International Night - which features displays, food, performances and national costumes from representatives from around the world in SPEA’s master’s student community. International Night was attended by approximately 200 people including students, faculty, staff and community members last year. This year, for the 50 Year Anniversary, a special two-hour long event will be held at the Indiana Memorial Union-University Club on Thursday, March 3rd with the intent of attracting a University-wide audience and showcasing SPEA's large and valued international community. SPEA’s Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs) serve as a major organizer in cooperation with SPEA’s diverse international student population to make the initiative one of SPEA’s largest student-driven events.

In addition, SPEA's International Public Affairs Association will hold its 4th Annual Spring Conference on March 25, 2011, at IU Bloomington. This is a student-organized conference held each spring that allows students to share and discuss individual research with colleagues not only from SPEA, but from graduate programs across IU and the state of Indiana. This year's theme is "Global Problems, Sustainable Solutions: Creating Policy for a Rapidly Changing World." Panelists will explore areas including environmental sustainability, foreign aid and economic development, international law, marginalized communities, and public administration. Faculty and students are encouraged to attend and may register for free by emailing ipaa@indiana.edu. More information about the conference will be available soon at http://ipaa.tumblr.com//.

SPEA’s Big Number

This week’s big (or low) number for SPEA Bloomington is the percentage of net operating income from Indiana state appropriations: 20.6%. This is the third lowest percentage of any unit at IU. The business school receives 12.9% of their net income from state appropriations and the medical sciences program receives 17.9% of their net income from state appropriations. The school of informatics is the most dependent on state appropriations, receiving 61.1% of their net income from state appropriations.

Shout-Out to SPEA Bloomington

Please join me in congratulating IUB SPEA Assistant Professor Joe Shaw on his recent co-authored article in Science. You can learn more about this research project at http://www.indiana.edu/~spea/research/shaw_crustacean.shtml. Additional information on the Daphnia Genomics Consortium projects can be found at http://daphnia.cgb.indiana.edu/. According to the IU media office, “no IU science news item in the last 10 years has received more international coverage than did [this] Science paper.”

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Innovation in Environmental Education

This Week’s Big Issue

Last semester the SPEA Bloomington faculty approved a new dual degree program between the MSES (in SPEA) and the MBA (in Kelley). The goal was to create a structured educational program that would prepare graduate students for careers in business where a technical background in the environment is necessary. This marked the first formal effort in SPEA’s history to partner with Kelley on a dual (or joint) educational program.

Unfortunately, the proposal has been put on hold for the time being. While there is support for this proposal within Kelley, a number of business school faculty are concerned that this effort comes at the wrong time. The business school is under great pressure to maintain their national ranking for their MBA, and there is some concern that these types of dual degrees may not work to achieve this goal.

On a more positive note, the dual MSES-Physics degree and dual MSES-Chemistry degree have received final approval on campus and are now in the implementation stage. Active recruitment for these programs will start this fall, but we are able to admit any interested students immediately.

We will continue to work on ways to innovate our environmental educational programs, building off of the recent growth in demand for the dual MPA-MSES, and plan to revisit the MSES-MGA proposal with our colleagues in the business school in the future.

What’s Happening in SPEA Bloomington?

I want to give you an update on our efforts to renovate some of our public spaces in the SPEA building. The library, new classrooms, and café/eating space are complete. We are planning an opening event celebration with our partners (library and business school) for February 7 from 3 to 4:30 in the new information commons. We hope to see you there.

The renovation work in the interior sections of the SPEA building (atrium and other public spaces) is almost done. We are still working to complete some of the window repair work on the side stairs. This work is being done to eliminate many of the water leaks that have plagued the building for decades. As soon as this is done, the painters will finish these areas and soft seating will be moved into these nooks so students can continue to use this space for educational purposes.

Faculty and student response to the two new classrooms has been very positive. Instructors are getting acclimated to the technologies built into the rooms. Also, the flexibility of the rooms to be adapted for a variety of different classroom activities gives instructors a number of unique opportunities to experiment with different educational techniques. If you want to explore these classrooms for future purposes, then please stop in during Fridays when they are mostly free to experiment.

If you have not walked around these renovated spaces, please take a few minutes to explore these upgrades to the building.

We are getting very close to the finish line!

SPEA’s Big Number

This week’s big number for SPEA Bloomington is the percentage of undergraduate SPEA majors in Fall 2010 that are on the Dean’s list: 31%

To qualify for the Dean’s list a student must earn a 3.5 semester GPA with a minimum of 12 credit hours.

Shout-Out to SPEA Bloomington

Please join me in congratulating our most recent recipients of the SPEA Academic Admission Awards in our undergraduate programs: Ms. Danielle J. Vetter, Ms. Kathryn (Kami) M. Spicklemire, and Mr. Daniel (Dan) Bader. These awards are designed to recognize IU Bloomington undergraduate students entering SPEA having already distinguished themselves academically and having enrolled in at least five credit hours of SPEA course work. Each has a 4.0 cumulative GPA. Recipients of this award are honored with a $2,000 scholarship.

Ms. Danielle J. Vetter is a Public and Nonprofit Management-Nonprofit major, BS in Public Affairs. This is her second semester at IU Bloomington. She attended Schaumburg High School in Schaumburg, Illinois.

Ms. Kathryn (Kami) M. Spicklemire is a Public and Nonprofit Management-Nonprofit major, BS in Public Affairs. This is her second semester at IU Bloomington. She is a transfer student from Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana. She attended Warren Central High School in Indianapolis.

Mr. Daniel (Dan) Bader is a Legal Studies major, BS in Public Affairs. This is his second semester at IU Bloomington. He is a transfer student from Champlain College in Burlington, Vermont and Ivy Tech in Bloomington, Indiana. He attended West Morris Mendham High School in Mendham, New Jersey.

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

International Affairs at IUB

This Week’s Big Issue

Should IU have a school of international affairs?

This is one of the questions the New Academic Directions Committee (http://www.indiana.edu/~newacad/academic/index.shtml) will be working on in the coming weeks as it develops recommendations for the President and the IU Board of Trustees.

Some argue that IU’s area study programs can be re-organized into a school of international affairs. What this argument misses is that the center of gravity in many IUB area study programs resides in the humanities. While literature, music, and languages, among other areas of the humanities are central to the study of international affairs, they tend to play a supporting role in international affairs schools in other leading universities where the social sciences (particularly international relations, international development and diplomacy) tend to take center stage.

SPEA’s focus on international affairs has waxed and waned over the years. Consistent with SPEA2015, we have made an effort to strengthen our international profile, developing overseas study courses, hiring faculty with international research agendas, and developing partnerships that will internationalize our student body. At some institutions, schools of public affairs are joined with schools of international affairs (e.g., Columbia University); however, the more typical arrangement is for these to be separate academic units.

As this discussion unfolds, we will need to consider whether SPEA should be the home for a new unit dedicated to international affairs, perhaps renaming the school to include this sphere of intellectual and educational activity.

Regardless of how IU decides to organize its international affairs education programs, an effort that strengthens international affairs on the IUB campus should be seen as a positive development for SPEA. An academic unit dedicated to international affairs would make it easier to recruit students and faculty with these interests to IUB SPEA with these interests. Moreover, an international affairs unit on the IUB campus could provide an important partner in our educational programs, especially for those students who plan to pursue global careers in public policy/administration.


What’s Happening in SPEA Bloomington?

The IU Debate Team, under Brian DeLong’s leadership, is off to a fast start. The Team has a new web-page (http://www.iub.edu/~iudebate/index.shtml). Make sure to look at some of the historical documents posted on the page that Brian uncovered to highlight the long and distinguished history of intercollegiate debate on the IUB campus. Major tournaments have been scheduled at the University of Kentucky, Georgia University, and the University of North Texas. Indiana will also host its first college tournament in nearly two decades in mid-February.

SPEA’s Big Number

This week’s big number for SPEA is the record setting size of the school (measured by undergraduate market share) on the Bloomington Campus: SPEA is the 4th largest school (overtaking Education and Music).

The College of Arts and Sciences is the largest school (56.5%), followed by the Kelley School of Business (15.5%), the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation (8.2%), SPEA (4.9%), Jacobs School of Music (4.4%), the School of Education (4.2%), the School of Informatics and Computing (2.0%), the School of Journalism (1.6%), Medical Sciences (0.9%), School of Optometry (0.09%), the School of Library and Information Systems (0.008%).

Shout-Out to SPEA Bloomington

Please join me in congratulating Sarah Hamang (BSPA, Nonprofit Management) on receipt of the Harry Bentley Burnett Scholarship. This program provides scholarships to the Hutton Honors College junior men and women in recognition of their outstanding academic achievements, exceptional leadership and contributions to their fields of study, to Indiana University and to the Bloomington community.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Leadership and Shaping Values

This Week’s Big Issue

This week’s big issue is leadership and the role SPEA’s educational programs play in shaping the values of our students. Paul O’Neill (IUB MPA 1966) visited SPEA last week to discuss this topic. He met with students and faculty to learn more about the School’s efforts to promote leadership (and character) development.

A trademark of SPEA’s educational programs is our desire to shape the analytic approach of our students. We do this in a number of ways but primarily through technical courses designed to provide students with practical skills that they can apply to real world problems. Specifically, the values we tend to promote are (1) looking for evidence and rationale for conclusions, (2) avoiding pre-commitment on an issue until appropriate analysis is performed, (3) respecting the roles of stakeholders and public participation in governance, and (4) respecting the legitimacy of alternative conceptions of the public good and openness toward alternative ways of expressing those values in a democratic process.

While we spend considerable time helping students cultivate their analytic skills, we struggle (and frequently disagree) on the role we should play in shaping their hearts.

Many educational organizations approach the issue of leadership and character development as a function of selecting individuals into educational programs that share the organization’s values. This passive approach can be balanced with more deliberate strategies of actively working with students to give them the opportunity to explore the ethical challenges they will likely face in their careers.

Given the unique and unprecedented challenges our country (and the world) faces, I encourage you to think and share approaches we should take to cultivate our students to become responsible leaders.

What’s Happening in SPEA Bloomington?

Last week the SPEA D.C. Alumni Group convened a seminar on “Rebuilding A Better Haiti: Are Recovery Efforts Aiding Development?” at the Ronald Reagan Building. The event was moderated by Mollie Lemon (SPEA alumnus and U.S. EPA) and featured presentations by Jonathan Nash (Director of Environmental and Social Assessment for the Millennium Challenge Corporation), Marie Gladys Guerrier Archange (Senior Environmental Specialist with the Fulbright Program), Gene George (Haiti Coordinator with the U.S. Peace Corps), Daniel Petz (Senior Research Assistant with the Brookings Institution) and Leon Waskin (Haiti Task Team Coordinator with the U.S. Agency for International Development). The event was attended by over 80 participants, and represents an important milestone in our efforts to support and cultivate SPEA alumni groups around the country.

SPEA’s Big Number

This week’s big number for SPEA Bloomington is the total number of full-time faculty: 75 (compared to 53 in academic year 2005-06).

Shout-Out to SPEA Bloomington

Please join me in congratulating everyone in SPEA Bloomington on winning first place in the latest round of the IUB Energy Challenge. http://energychallenge.indiana.edu/academicstandings.html

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Inside SPEA

This Week’s Big Issue

There is much confusion outside of SPEA about our internal faculty organization. While many academic organizations have departments, SPEA is organized around faculty groups. I am frequently asked to explain the difference between faculty groups and departments and find that faculty, students and staff sometimes have a difficult time understanding the faculty group concept.

Since its founding, SPEA has sought to break-down traditional disciplinary boundaries by creating an environment where investigators from many applied fields working on pressing issues of the day can be encouraged and supported. Traditional disciplinary boundaries and the departmental organization found in many academic units can sometimes create boundaries that place limits on the type of research that is rewarded. Given the breadth and depth of issues covered at SPEA, departments were seen as cutting against the need for flexibility and agility.

In SPEA Bloomington, faculty groups are directed by a faculty chair. Faculty chairs have many of the same responsibilities as department chairs. Faculty chairs are responsible for leading the scholarly mission of the School by working on faculty recruitment and development, and connecting faculty members with others in their field through research seminars. The primary differences are that they are not responsible for running educational programs, dealing with student or faculty complaints, or managing departmental support staff, as is typically the case for department chairs. Since many of SPEA’s academic programs cut across our faculty groups, our educational programs are run by directors who report to the Dean’s Office. More information on our faculty groups can be found at: http://www.indiana.edu/~spea/faculty/faculty_groups/index.shtml

I suspect there are many different views on the strengths and weaknesses of the faculty group structure. Some are likely to argue it has served the School well since its founding in the early 1970s, whereas others are likely to express their disappointment that the level of cross-faculty group collaboration has been underwhelming and individual faculty members have not taken advantage of the flexibility offered by faculty groups.

Putting aside the virtues of the faculty group concept, SPEA’s growth will present challenges for how best to organize itself. Faculty groups centralize much of the decision making in the Dean’s Office. This is manageable in a smaller organization, but will present real issues as the School continues to grow on the Bloomington campus.

While Deans play a role in answering these questions, the faculty controls the decision of how best to organize our scholarly activity.

What’s Happening in SPEA Bloomington?

It was wonderful to see so many students, faculty and staff at the Indiana 9th Congressional District Debate hosted by SPEA Bloomington. We had a strong turnout (the place was packed with over 500 guests) and everyone got a chance to participate in a meaningful exchange of ideas. Brian DeLong, IU’s debate coach and new SPEA faculty member, did a great job under very difficult circumstances. He was able to minimize the cheers and jeers that go along with a passion filled political debate. Fortunately, we did not have to expel members of the audience for unruly behavior. The debate will be broadcast on CSPAN. When I have the air time, I will pass along the details. If you missed the debate, you can view it on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6N25iWiR5k

SPEA’s Big Number

This week’s big (or low) number for SPEA Bloomington is the total amount of indirect cost on grants/contracts by SPEA faculty in FY2009-10: $658,622. This is a the lowest since FY1995-96.

Shout-Out to SPEA Bloomington

Please join me in congratulating SPEA (students, faculty and staff) on the recent National Research Council rankings of 5,000 university doctoral programs in 59 fields of study. Data for these rankings capture program activity between 2002 and 2006. These rankings are based on measures of doctoral program quality in a particular field, not just perceived rankings based on prestige. While the ranking methodology makes it difficult to establish a fixed order, it is fair to say that we are outranked by Princeton (between #1 and #2) and are neck-and-neck with Carnegie Mellon (between #2 and #5) and Syracuse (#4 according to both methodologies). We outrank a number of excellent schools. There are only two other doctoral programs on the Bloomington campus (Musicology in the Jacob School of Music and Folklore/Ethnomusicology in COAS) with rankings equal to or better than the rankings of SPEA’s public affairs and public policy doctoral programs. I encourage you to explore the data and see how we compare to other doctoral programs around the country. The data can be found at: http://www.nap.edu/rdp

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Welcome to Inside SPEA: A Bloomington Campus Blog!

The purpose of this new blog is to help keep SPEA faculty, staff, students, and alumni up-to-date on school-related developments on the Bloomington campus. In addition, it is my hope that it will provide a forum for us to discuss ongoing issues we face in meeting our mission.

The plan is to provide an update every other week. The format of these updates will include the following elements: 1) My take on a particular big issue facing the school; 2) A highlight from a recent event or a profile of a can’t miss event; 4) A big number that captures a school-wide accomplishment or some aspect of our work that needs our attention; and 5) A shout-out to a member of the SPEA community that deserves special recognition. The format is flexible, so please suggest other aspects of SPEA-BL life that should be a point of focus.

This Week’s Big Issue

I am frequently asked “What is SPEA?” I suspect many of you are also asked the same question. The simple response “The School of Public and Environmental Affairs” almost always results in the following-up question: “What is that?”

In November 1971, a proposal to create SPEA was submitted to the Indiana Commission on Higher Education. It stated that the goal of SPEA was to “establish a central focus for professional training and related research for the public sector of our economy….It will have a problem-solving, public service, and interdisciplinary character.” While this language describes our institutional origins and helps provide some context for the question “What is SPEA?”, it falls short of providing a meaningful description to many students, faculty and staff that are unfamiliar with what we do.

Some people think of SPEA as a school of government or a school of public policy. Clearly, some of the work we do is captured by this description but it fails to recognize the unique aspect of the school’s activities in environmental science, nonprofit management, and arts administration. Moreover, it gives the impression that we only work on matters relating to government, when many of our graduates are cultivating the knowledge and skills to launch careers that span the public, nonprofit, and private sectors.

Some think of SPEA as a school of the environment (or a school of natural resources). Clearly, this covers some of the activity/work that takes place in SPEA, but it falls short since it ignores the reality that most of our students and faculty work on topics that are largely unrelated to the environment.

Clearly, SPEA is an organization with many faces and we should embrace our intellectual and topical diversity. Perhaps there is no one correct response to the question: “What is SPEA?” Instead, I propose that the answer depends on who is asking the question. It would be short-sighted to give the same answer to a prospective student interested in public finance, and to a prospective student interested in environmental science or arts administration. These audiences have different frames of reference and we need to describe the School in terms that have meaning to the audience we are addressing. Moreover, SPEA’s vitality depends on its ability to re-shape itself as the landscape of modern life shifts from one topic or region of the country/globe to another. We do ourselves a disservice to force a single, uniform answer that is time invariant.

What’s Happening in SPEA Bloomington?

We have a number of very exciting guests scheduled to visit this fall and all are worthy of a closer look and your participation. A list of these events can be found at: https://onestart.iu.edu/ccl-prd/GroupCalendar.do?methodToCall=publicCalendar&pubCalId=GRP1558

I am particularly interested in an upcoming visit by Teresa Lubbers, the Indiana Commissioner for Higher Education. She will be visiting SPEA-BL during the afternoon of Friday, October 8th. The principal purpose of her visit is to speak at the first program of a new student group, the Education Policy Student Association (EDPOSA), which consists of graduate and undergraduate students across campus units who are interested in education policy issues.

Commissioner Lubbers will be available to hold an informal meeting for interested faculty on October 8th at 4 p.m. in the Dean’s Conference Room, where she will take questions from faculty and provide her perspective on the most important issues facing higher education at the state and national levels.

Teresa Lubbers became Indiana’s Commissioner for Higher Education in 2009, following a 17 year career in the Indiana State Senate. For more information on her background, here is a link to her professional biography: http://www.lubbersforsenate.com/biography.html

SPEA’s Big Number

This week’s big number for SPEA Bloomington is a record total number of full-time enrolled students in all of our educational programs: 2,030

Shout-Out to SPEA Bloomington

Please join me in congratulating Joseph Slaughterbeck, majoring in health administration at IU Bloomington, as a recipient of the Cox Fellowship Program. For more information about this prestigious award, please visit: http://newsinfo.iu.edu/news/page/normal/15755.html