Public policy is the quintessential outcome of politics. This course introduces the processes and institutions through which public policy is designed, implemented and monitored in the United States. The course will focus on understanding public problems, what do decision makers and elected officials do to solve them and the consequences of their policy choices. The course also focuses on introducing students to the tools of policy analysis. The first half of the course introduces students to theories and tools of policy making and policy analysis. The second half of the course applies these theories and tools to public policy domains. The course pays particular attention to the development of clear, precise, and fact-based written and oral communication.
Introduction to the institutions of government with an emphasis on the congress, the president, and the federal courts.
This course is designed to introduce you to the politics of Hispanics/Latinos living in the United States. Course topics will include the differences among the major Latino groups, Latino representation, public opinion, and participation in the American political process. We will conclude with an examination of key public policies affecting the Latino community
This course is designed to introduce you to the historical, institutional, and electoral workings of Congress. Lectures will span topics ranging from congressional elections, the procedures of each chamber, the committee system, and how members of Congress make the decisions they do. By the end of the course, you will be ready to intern in any congressional office.
This course is a systematic examination of the literature on American institutions and public policy. Complementing the American behavior course, this course will include literature from the field of American politics as well as the field of public policy. Public policy as a field overlaps with many subfields in political science, including American politics, International Relations, and Comparative politics. The course will cover as much material as possible for a semester, but students are encouraged to read widely in areas of specific intellectual interests, especially in particular domains of public policy, such as education or immigration policy.