Cost Benefit Analysis
Lecture
This course introduces students to the principles and practice of cost-benefit analysis for evaluating policies and projects. Emphasizing practical skills over theoretical complexity, students will learn to apply key tools, including valuation methods, discounting, sensitivity analysis, and Excel-based modeling. The first half of the course focuses on the economic and methodological foundations; the second half applies these tools to real-world case studies in various sectors, including transportation, health, education, energy, and security. The course culminates in a major project requiring students to conduct and present an independent cost-benefit analysis on a topic of their choice.
Pre-req: EMPA IA8213 - Microeconomics or equivalent.
Familiarity with Excel is strongly recommended.
- S 10 a.m.-11:50 a.m.
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Instructor:
Eva Weissman
Info - 3 points
Cost Benefit Analysis
Recitation
This course introduces students to the principles and practice of cost-benefit analysis for evaluating policies and projects. Emphasizing practical skills over theoretical complexity, students will learn to apply key tools, including valuation methods, discounting, sensitivity analysis, and Excel-based modeling. The first half of the course focuses on the economic and methodological foundations; the second half applies these tools to real-world case studies in various sectors, including transportation, health, education, energy, and security. The course culminates in a major project requiring students to conduct and present an independent cost-benefit analysis on a topic of their choice.
Pre-req: EMPA IA8213 - Microeconomics or equivalent.
Familiarity with Excel is strongly recommended.
- S 1:10 p.m.-3 p.m.
- 0 points
Strategic Management in the Age of AI
Strategic Management of Information and Communication Technologies for the Public Good” addresses the spectrum of policy issues, options, and critical decisions confronting senior managers in the public sphere. Classes will be taught by a combination of lecture, readings, and case. Each class will address policy, technical, and managerial challenges for a particular domain of practice from the introduction or use of established and leading-edge information and communication technologies (ICTs), among them cloud, mobile and social. Arenas may include, for example, health, education, energy, economic development, transportation, civic engagement, law enforcement, human resources, social services, transportation, or compliance and regulatory affairs. The cases will involve a variety of managerial dilemmas and decisions, from governance to transparency, performance management to project management, and be generalizable across multiple domains, arenas, and technologies. Our goal is to expose students to the broadest range of policy challenges, and technologies comprising ICTs in use in the principal domains of practice, giving students a comprehensive exposure to the issues and opportunities as managers encounter them today - and will in the very near future. The course is intended for general, non-technical managers and assumes no engineering capability greater than plugging in a USB stick.
- M 5:10 p.m.-7 p.m.
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Instructor:
Robert Z Tumin
Info - 3 points
Political Economy Seminar
This seminar surveys the defining political economy issues of our time. It examines the interplay between politics and economics in the key substantive issue areas of economic growth, institutional comparative advantage, financial crises, industrial relations, social welfare, and gender. The seminar surveys the most provocative, influential contributions in multiple fields of study utilizing a wide range of research methods. The course equips students with the conceptual and empirical tools to better understand current developments, provides exposure to multiple perspectives, and builds confidence in developing one’s own point of view.
- W 6:10 p.m.-9 p.m.
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Instructor:
Yumiko T Shimabukuro
Info - 3 points
International Relations Theory for Globa
IR Theory & Global Policy
This course provides an advanced introduction to core theories of international relations and their application to real-world policymaking in a global context. Students will examine foundational and contemporary analytical frameworks, including realism, liberalism, constructivism, game theory, selectorate theory, decision-making models, two-level game theory, and complex interdependence. Through a structured combination of lectures, discussions, and collaborative group analysis, students will apply these theories to contemporary global issues, with a focus on the U.S.–China relationship. The course culminates in a two-session policy forum, in which students present theory-based policy analyses they have developed over the semester. Emphasis is placed on practical application, clarity of analysis, and professional presentation.
- T 5:10 p.m.-7 p.m.
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Instructor:
Fumiko Sasaki
Info - 3 points
Affordable Housing Finance: Policy and A
This course explores the institutional frameworks and financial mechanisms that shape affordable housing policy in the United States. Designed for students seeking a practical understanding of housing finance, the course examines how public and private sectors collaborate to address the needs of low- and moderate-income households. Students will analyze the effectiveness of programs that promote access to affordable rental and owned housing, develop familiarity with key institutions and policies such as CRA, HMDA, and LIHTC, and evaluate project finance strategies. The course begins with approaches to homeownership as a path to intergenerational wealth, followed by a focus on rental housing that promotes stability, economic mobility, and equity. Students will engage with real-world data tools to assess lending patterns and housing market dynamics, culminating in a group project simulating a public financing request for an affordable housing development.
- M 5:10 p.m.-7 p.m.
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Instructor:
Richard Koss
Info - 3 points
Quantitative Techniques
Lecture
This course equips mid-career professionals with the statistical tools needed to make data-informed decisions in public management and policy contexts. The course begins with foundational concepts in probability and statistics and advances through hypothesis testing, regression analysis, and applied data interpretation. Emphasis is placed on practical application, allowing students to critically evaluate research and apply quantitative findings to real-world policy and business challenges.
Designed for students with basic mathematics and high school algebra, the course does not require prior statistical knowledge. It includes hands-on training in STATA, a widely used statistical software package, to streamline analysis and enhance decision-making capabilities. By the end of the semester, students will be prepared to use statistical reasoning in managerial settings and interpret quantitative analysis produced by professional researchers.
- S 1:10 p.m.-3 p.m.
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Instructor:
Stuart E Ward
Info - 3 points
Quantitative Techniques
Recitation
This course equips mid-career professionals with the statistical tools needed to make data-informed decisions in public management and policy contexts. The course begins with foundational concepts in probability and statistics and advances through hypothesis testing, regression analysis, and applied data interpretation. Emphasis is placed on practical application, allowing students to critically evaluate research and apply quantitative findings to real-world policy and business challenges.
Designed for students with basic mathematics and high school algebra, the course does not require prior statistical knowledge. It includes hands-on training in STATA, a widely used statistical software package, to streamline analysis and enhance decision-making capabilities. By the end of the semester, students will be prepared to use statistical reasoning in managerial settings and interpret quantitative analysis produced by professional researchers.
- S 3:10 p.m.-5 p.m.
- 0 points
Communicating in Organizations
Communicating in Organizations is a survey course that explores aspects of day-to-day managerial communication relating to presentations and other high-profile moments and more familiar elements of interpersonal communication. The course uses many teaching techniques: short lectures, individual and group exercises, video-recorded presentations, role plays, case discussions, video clips, and writing assignments. It is highly experiential, with exercises or presentations scheduled in most sessions. Initially, we’ll focus on the communication skills and strategies that help you present your ideas to others. I’ll ask you to do two benchmark assignments―a letter and a brief presentation―to assess the abilities you bring to the course. In several of our class sessions, you’ll be the one “in front of the room,” delivering either a prepared talk or brief, impromptu comments. Such assignments will allow you to develop your skills as a presenter. I’ll also discuss the link between listening and speaking, showing you how developing your listening skills will improve your effectiveness as a speaker. And we’ll explore several elements of visual communication, including how to design effective visual aids and written documents. To communicate effectively in such roles as coach, interviewer, negotiator, or facilitator, you need to be skilled at listening, questioning, observing behavior, and giving feedback. We’ll practice each of these skills in-class exercises and assignments. The Social Style instrument will provide detailed feedback about how others view your communication style. You’ll discover how style differences may lead to miscommunication, missed opportunities, or mishandled conflict.
- R 7:10 p.m.-9 p.m.
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Instructor:
Joann P Baney
Info - 3 points
Social Justice Movements in the Age of S
Social Justice & Social M
This course is an introduction to how emerging hybrid models of traditional and digital organizing and advocacy are building unprecedented social justice movements in the United States. During the first half of the course, students will examine the theory and practice of successful traditional offline organizing and advocacy campaigns as well as principles and characteristics of successful digital activism. In the second half of the course, students w2ill analyze contemporary social movements that have fused offline and online organizing and advocacy tactics, including ongoing activism for racial equity, drug policy reform, LGBTQ rights, criminal justice reform, gender equity, and immigration reform. Using a blend of book and journal readings, case studies, videos, and hands-on group project, and guest speaker practitioners, this course will paint a vivid picture of how social change happens in our age of social media coexisting within the practical realities of longstanding power dynamics.
- W 7:10 p.m.-9 p.m.
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Instructor:
Richard F Greenberg
Info - 3 points
Rethinking Policing in the 21st Century
Rethinking Policing Today
This course examines modern policing in the United States through historical, legal, racial, and political lenses. Students will explore the evolution of policing practices and their implications for civil rights, public trust, and public safety. Key topics include police recruitment and training, disciplinary procedures, technology in law enforcement, use-of-force guidelines, and the impact of police unions. The course will evaluate the role of social movements, such as Black Lives Matter, in advancing reform and will analyze policy recommendations implemented in cities across the U.S. and abroad. Students will engage with current scholarship, government reports, and case studies to assess efforts to reimagine public safety, address systemic racism, and improve police-community relations. The course culminates in a policy-oriented final paper proposing actionable reform strategies.
- M 7:10 p.m.-9 p.m.
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Instructor:
Basil A Jr Smikle
Info - 3 points
Impact Measurement and Program Evaluatio
Impact & Program Evaluati
In this intensive course, Executive MPA students will learn how to manage an impact measurement and program evaluation lifecycle through lectures, discussions, case studies, readings, and a team project. Students will learn and apply core concepts, methodologies, and frameworks used in the field, as well as be introduced to the use of technologies such as lean data, AI, geospatial tools, mobile, and NLP. Students will consider how to account for diverse stakeholders, risks, counterfactuals, attribution, and the ethical issues involved in data collection, analysis, and reporting. They will also examine critical questions, including: What is the impact, and who is to define it? How do we account for unintended consequences? How should long-term outcomes be measured meaningfully while satisfying short-term investment horizons? Finally, students will consider how the practice of impact measurement and program evaluation can be leveraged to inform program design and strategy, strengthen mission alignment, deepen accountability, and foster a culture of continuous learning in government, nonprofit, and private sector actors.
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Instructor:
Brian Gurski
Info - 1.5 points
Capstone Workshop for Executive MPA
Capstone Workshop for EMP
The EMPA Capstone Workshop
is a culminating experience in which students apply the practical skills and analytical knowledge acquired during the program to a real-world policy or management challenge. Working in small consulting teams under faculty supervision, students engage with an external client to address a defined problem, conduct research, and deliver actionable recommendations.
Each team produces a final written report and presents its findings in a formal oral briefing designed to support implementation and impact. The workshop develops applied consulting, project management, and client engagement skills while reinforcing core competencies in policy analysis and public leadership.
Completion of the Capstone or Portfolio Presentation Workshop is a graduation requirement for Executive MPA students and is typically taken in the final semester. Enrollment is by application and managed by the EMPA Student Affairs.
- T 7 p.m.-9 p.m.
- T 7:10 p.m.-9 p.m.
- S 1:10 p.m.-3 p.m.
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Instructor:
William B Eimicke
Info -
Instructor:
Robert Kopech
Info -
Instructor:
Fumiko Sasaki
Info - 3 points
Portfolio Presentation Workshop
The Portfolio Presentation Workshop
is a culminating course that enables students to synthesize and showcase what they have learned throughout the Executive MPA program. Students develop and present an individual project focused on improving an organization, launching a new initiative, or conducting a case study of a significant policy or management issue. Each student draws upon prior coursework, professional experience, and new research to produce a final written report and two structured presentations.
The course emphasizes reflective practice, peer feedback, and real-world application. Students are required to submit a project proposal, assess prior work products, and present findings to their instructor and classmates. Final deliverables demonstrate the student’s ability to apply strategic, analytical, and leadership tools in a way that advances organizational goals and prepares them for future professional growth.
- S 1:10 p.m.-4 p.m.
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Instructor:
Kweli E Washington
Info - 3 points