Abbreviation | NASPAA |
---|---|
Motto | The Global Standard in Public Service Education |
Type | NGO |
Purpose | Educational accreditation |
Website | naspaa.org |
The Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA) is a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization. It is an international association of public affairs schools (schools of public policy and administration) at universities in the United States and abroad. NASPAA is also the recognized accreditor of master's degree programs in public policy (MPP), public affairs (MPAff), and public administration (MPA). Its stated mission is to "ensure excellence in education and training for public service and to promote the ideal of public service."
Founded in 1970, NASPAA serves as a national and international resource for the promotion of excellence in education for the public service. Its institutional membership includes more than 280 university programs in the United States in public administration, policy, and management. NASPAA is also the accreditator of its member schools, seeking to promote the quality of education. It accomplishes its purposes through direct services to its member institutions and by:
NASPAA provides opportunities for international engagement for NASPAA members, placing a global emphasis on educational quality and quality assurance through a series of networked international initiatives, in particular the Network of Institutes and Schools of Public Administration in Central and Eastern Europe (NISPAcee), the Inter-American Network of Public Administration Education (INPAE), and the Georgian Institute of Public Affairs (GIPA). It is also involved locally, directing the Small Communities Outreach Project for Environmental Issues, which networks public affairs schools and local governments around environmental regulation policy issues, with support from the Environmental Protection Agency.
In 2013, NASPAA changed its name from the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration to the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration to reflect its "growing international membership and disciplinary breadth."
The society's official journal is the Journal of Public Affairs Education. (JPAE) JPAE was founded in 1995 by a consortium from the University of Kansas and the University of Akron and was originally published as the Journal of Public Administration Education. H. George Frederickson was the journal’s founding editor. In addition to serving as NASPAA’s journal of record, JPAE is affiliated with the Section on Public Administration Education of the American Society for Public Administration.