No Time like the Present: Making Rule of Law and Constitutional Competence the Theoretical and Practical Foundation for Public Administration Graduate Education Curriculum

Abstract

Most Master of Public Administration (MPA) and Master of Public Policy (MPP) programs across the United States focus extensively on policy analysis, management, and leadership, because organizations like the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA), the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA), and the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management (APPAM) have determined that these areas comprise the core intellectual and practical dimensions of the MPA and MPP degrees. The omission of required curricula that emphasize the legal and constitutional basis of public administration theory and practice should be of central concern to the public administration education community. Constitutional competence as well as a wide understanding of how the rule the of law affects nearly every dimension of public administration is not optional for effective and responsible democratic governance in the 21st century. If MPA/MPP graduates enter the public sector workforce without the knowledge that they can be held personally and professionally liable if they violate citizens’ constitutionally protected rights, public administration educators have not provided them with some of the most important skills necessary for constitutionally competent public sector management.