Dr. David C. Powell
Greetings and welcome to the Internet home of the Graduate Center for Public Policy and Administration (GCPPA) at California State University, Long Beach. The GCPPA offers a NASPAA accredited MPA degree that is geared toward enhancing the excellence of public service in Southern California. The on-campus program offers students the convenience of evening and weekend classes in a challenging, yet comfortable academic environment. In addition to the general MPA degree, the GCPPA also offers options in Urban Administration or Public Works Administration as well as various certificate programs.
The GCPPA also offers an accelerated Distance Learning Program for in-service practitioners. The Distance Learning Program offers the general MPA degree through twelve hybrid classes that combine on-campus meetings with online education. The Seventh Distance Learning Cohort is scheduled to begin classes in March, 2007.
Growth has been the hallmark of the MPA program over the past several years. The GCPPA is enjoying record enrollments in both the on-campus and Distance Learning programs and continues to attract the best and brightest to government service. New graduates will join over 1,700 alumni who have graduated from the GCPPA over the past 30 years.
Our faculty brings a broad range of research and teaching interests to the classroom. Many of our faculty members are active researchers and publish in the nation’s most elite journals. This research greatly enriches the classroom experience of our students better preparing them to be leaders in public service. Several of our graduates have gone on to leadership and management positions as city managers, agency directors, and state legislators.
Recent changes to the curriculum have produced a dynamic approach to public service education that emphasizes learning in practice. Students are afforded the opportunity to apply theories to practical public service settings and scenarios through course assignments, the creation of a Student Learning Portfolio, internships, and interaction with practitioners from various backgrounds and areas of expertise.
The goal of the GCPPA is to create a challenging and dynamic learning environment for public leaders of today and tomorrow. Thank you for your interest in the GCPPA and we invite you to experience our MPA program for yourself!
SCAC AWARD
The Scholarly and Creative Activity Committee (SCAC) has elected Linda-Marie Sunstrom a full-time Lecturer from the Graduate Center for Public Policy and Administration.
FULBRIGHT DISTINGUISHED CHAIR
Frank Baber, Associate Professor in the Graduate Center for Public Policy and Administration, has been named Fulbright Distinguished Chair of Environmental Policy at the Polytechnic Institute of Turin for 2009.
NASPAA
The Graduate Center for Public Policy and Administration's MPA program is accredited by the National Schools of Public Affairs and Administration, and we are up for re-accreditation again. The Accredition Team will be arriving on campus February 24-26, 2009 for a site visit.
