SLU Public Policy Studies

This position is responsible for assessing roughly 150+ community neighborhoods and stormwater facilities (such as detention basins, storm drain pipes, etc.) for stormwater pollution. This job includes moderate field work to collect data, assess condition, and photographically document residential properties with a high degree of accuracy. The internship culminates with the production of a plan to help the City prioritize pollution prevention efforts, marketing, and specific projects for residential areas that present a higher potential for creating water pollution. Salary is $10 per hour. Application deadline is Mar. 31. Go to www.wentzvillemo.org to view the full job description and information on how to apply. EOE

For those of you who haven’t heard, Google is accepting applications from cities nationwide to serve as the test market for Google Fiber, internet service which would be up 100 times faster than standard internet connection. St. Louis needs your help. The St. Louis Google Fiber Community Support site is up and running as of today: http://stlcin.missouri.org/googlefiber/

It would be great if you could circulate the link through your social networks and encourage your friends & coworkers to add their organizations as supporters of our application, leave a personal comment on the Google Map, or upload a YouTube support video! You can do all of the above directly from the website. A major portion of Google’s interest is centered around finding out if the community wants and supports this concept so we could really use your help there!

I would like to draw your attention to an exciting new development in the State Politics and Policy section of the American Political Science Association.  The section has a new award: the Christopher Z. Mooney Dissertation Award for the Best Dissertation in American State Politics and Policy Research.  We seek nominations for excellent dissertations in this academic field completed during the 2009 calendar year.  The deadline for submitting a nomination is March 31, 2010. 
 
The dissertation award will be granted for the first time at the State Politics and Policy Conference in Springfield, Illinois on June 4-5, 2010.  The finalists will be invited to attend the conference to present the dissertation research in a special poster session, and the winner will be announced at the conference.   The dissertation author and the dissertation chair will each receive a plaque honoring the research, and there is the possibility of a stipend for the dissertation author, pending approval of funding and final implementation arrangements.     
 
Consideration for the award requires a letter of nomination from the Dissertation Chair (or other member of a dissertation committee) and an electronic copy of the full dissertation, including a completed signature page from the dissertation defense or other official university documentation to verify that the dissertation was successfully defended between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2009.  The electronic copy of the dissertation can be submitted by the student, the department, or a member of the dissertation committee.  All materials should be submitted to the dissertation award committee chair by March 31, 2010.
 
The Mooney dissertation award committee includes Elizabeth Rigby at the University of Houston (chair), Marjorie Sarbaugh-Thompson at Wayne State University, and Todd Donovan at Western Washington University.  Please send inquiries, nominations, and supporting documentation to:
 
Elizabeth Rigby
Chair, Christopher Z. Mooney Dissertation Award Committee
University of Houston
erigby@uh.edu  
 
 Thanks,
 
Lilliard Richardson
President, State Politics and Policy Section, American Political Science Association

The Mid-Continent Regional Science Association (MCRSA) invites you to participate in its annual conference and student paper competition. The conference is scheduled for June 3-5, 2010 in St. Louis, MO.

MCRSA sponsors the annual M. Jarvin Emerson Student Paper Competition. The winner of the competition receives a $1,000 award plus publication of the paper in the Association’s peer-reviewed journal, The Journal of Regional Analysis & Policy. The combination of the cash award and publication make this among the best professional association awards available. The winner must be able to attend the conference to present the paper, but the cash award should cover travel expenses. The deadline for submission of a completed paper is April 1, 2010. The winner will be notified by April 15.

MCRSA also has received a grant from the USDA North Central Regional Center for Rural Development (NCRCRD) to provide travel grants for NCRCRD-member institution graduate students to attend the conference to present a paper. A limited number of cash awards of up to $400 each to help cover travel expenses of graduate students enrolled in North Central Region Land Grant Institutions will be made. The deadline for submission of a travel grant application is April 1, 2010. Award recipients will be notified by April 15.

The Mid-Continent Regional Science Association is an organization consisting of an interdisciplinary membership from academics and other public and private organizations. We are interested in using the tools of regional science to help solve applied problems in rural and urban areas at the local, state, and national levels. Among our membership are campus-based teachers and researchers, outreach educators, public and private analysts, consultants, and many others. The disciplines represented within our group include economics, planning, geography, business, sociology, public administration, and others.

For your convenience, a student paper competition notice is attached. To learn more about the MCRSA annual conference, the student paper competition, and the available travel grant opportunities, go the MCRSA Website at www.mcrsa.org and click on the Conference links.

If you have questions, contact John Leatherman at 785-532-4492 or jleather@k-state.edu.

John Leatherman
Office of Local Government
Department of Agricultural Economics
Kansas State University
331G Waters Hall
Manhattan, KS 66506-4026

Phone: 785-532-4492
Fax: 785-532-6925
NEW E-mail: jleather@k-state.edu
Website: www.oznet.ksu.edu/olg

Dear PMRA Members,

Greetings.  If you are interested in presenting a paper at the Public Management Research Association/International Research Society for Public Management Hong Kong conference in October 2010, please see the message from Professor Richard Walker below.  Thanks!

Sincerely,

PMRA Secretariat

The call for papers for the Public Management Research Association/International Research Society for Public Management Hong Kong conference in October 2010 closes at the end of the month. Please find details on the process for submitting abstracts at http://www.hku.hk/socsc/prmc.

Regards,

Richard

This will be an educational and informational meeting to connect students with the various opportunities to become active in this campaign both at SLU and in the greater St. Louis area and also to train students in how to be effective advocates for transit in their communiities.

In addition to members of the SLU Transit Alliance, this training will be led by Liz Kramer and Adam Shriver, experienced transit advocates who have led Washington University’s incredible student effort in support of Prop A.

Date: Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Time: 7:00pm – 8:00pm
Location: BSC 253A

The following is a message from the SLU Transit Alliance. The Department, as a part of Saint Louis University, does not take positions on political issues. The message below is for the education of our students and alumni.

Dear Members of the Saint Louis University Community,
 
An issue of critical importance will appear this spring on the April 6th ballot
in St. Louis County. This is Proposition A, an initiative to raise a half-
cent sales tax to restore service cuts and expand the operations of Metro
public transportation services throughout the area. Without the passage of
this critical tax, extreme cuts will be made to the system, putting thousands
of St. Louisans either out of work or unable to find transportation to their jobs.
In addition, the long term economic growth of the region will suffer. In order to
vote on this important issue, students must be registered to vote by
March 10th. A student group, the SLU Transit Alliance, is leading an effort to
promote education about and organize support for Proposition A.  Questions
or inquiries may be directed to the SLU Transit Alliance at transitslu@gmail.com.
Listed below is information that you might find helpful:
 
REGISTERING TO VOTE OR CHANGING YOUR ADDRESS:
In order to vote in the April 6th St. Louis County election, you must be
registered by Wednesday, March 10.  As this falls during Spring Break,
students should register before leaving campus for the break. There will
be numerous opportunities to do this at our booth in the BSC Main
Entrance next week at these days and times:

Tuesday, March 2nd – 11am- 2pm
Wednesday, March 3rd – 9am- Noon
Friday, March 5th- 9am- Noon

NOTE:  You or your family must permanently reside in St. Louis County
to be eligible to register to vote on Prop A. If your family lives in the County,
but you registered to vote at the BSC last Presidential election, you must
re-register with your home address in order to vote on Prop A. If you can not
get to a polling station on April 6th, we can register you to vote absentee with
a mail-in ballot. More information about this is given further down. If you are
not eligible to vote, but might get involved in this campaign on campus or
throughout the city, more there are many opportunities with some information
listed below.

When you come to to our booth at the BSC to register to vote, please bring a photo
ID. Even if you are already registered in the City, you are to re-register as a “New Voter”
in the County. We will submit your Registration to the Election Board, and within a
few weeks you will receive a notification of your polling station at your home address.
If you will require an absentee ballot because you will be unable to get to the polling
station on April 6th, we will have these applications available and can submit them
for you as well. Your absentee ballot will then be mailed to your home address. You
must then fill it out and mail it in to the St. Louis County Board of Elections ten days
prior to election day.

For those ineligible to vote, at our booth we will also have a petition available
to be signed to lobby the SLU Administration to take a more active role in publicly
endorsing and supporting Proposition A, as every other major academic institution
in St. Louis has done.

Other info about opportunities to get involved such as phone banking, canvassing,
the Voter Neighbor program, and with the SLU Transit Alliance on campus will be
discussed at the Public Transportation Advocacy Training in BSC 251A on Tuesday,
March 2nd from 7pm- 830.

Also please check out the Metro Transit Panel hosted by the Saint Louis University
Urban Planning Association (SLUUPA) this Friday, February 26th at 5:30 in Tegeler 102.
This will be an excellent panel discussion led by Courtney Sloger (Public Relations),
Mark Phillips (Long-Range Planner) and Jennifer Ash (Real Estate Manager) from Metro.
They plan to lead a discussion on long-range plans for public transit expansion in the
St. Louis region, the construction of the new Scott Avenue Transit plaza (Grand Metrolink
Station), as well as the impact of Proposition A.

Thank you for your time, and we hope to hear back from you. Remember, you may not
ride it, but we all need it.

SLU Transit Alliance
transitslu@gmail.com

P.S. Check out or Facebook page! SLU Transit Alliance

Panel: Redefining Neighborhoods

Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning

 2010 PhD Workshop

23-26 June 2010

Georgia Tech

 PURPOSE

The Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning invites doctoral students of planning working on their dissertation research to attend the 2010 ACSP PhD Workshop. This year, the workshop will be hosted by the School of City and Regional Planning at Georgia Institute of Technology.  The Workshop attracts PhD students from planning programs from around the world to gather and discuss the practical details of creating, producing, distributing and consuming planning knowledge among scholars. Workshop participants will learn to conceive, organize, and present PhD-quality research to multiple audiences, including, most centrally, their peers. Students will advise one another as scholars pursuing unique research paths within a community of shared inquiry. The faculty work mainly as advisors and coaches. International students are welcome to apply.

PARTICIPANTS and FACULTY

The Workshop is geared toward planning doctoral students who will be taking, or have recently passed their PhD qualifying examination (or equivalent). Students will have several opportunities to present their work to their fellow students and workshop faculty in large group as well as breakout sessions. Students will be expected to have submitted some written work beforehand, whether a dissertation prospectus, research work plan, or draft chapter. The workshop will be limited to approximately 20 students to ensure adequate time for participation and feedback. This year’s workshop faculty will be drawn from several institutions.  All have extensive experience advising PhD students in multiple areas.  This year’s workshop faculty will include: Georgia Tech’s Michael Elliott, Steven French, Dan Immergluck, and Nancey Green Leigh; as well as University of Pennsylvania’s John Landis.

WORKSHOP THEMES

The workshop will include both plenary and small-group sessions. Each student will make at least two presentations about their research with the objective of gaining insight into how to maximize the impact of the participant’s dissertation research.  Supplementary objectives include broader learning about planning research design and communication, enhanced understanding about the place of planning scholarship in careers and in the advancement of our profession, and network building among young planning scholars.

Building Block questions of the workshop will be Why? What? How? and Who?

• WHY: What purpose does your inquiry serve?  Why should others care about your research? What difference will your inquiry and results make?
• WHAT: What is your thesis or argument? What knowledge claims do you expect your research to support? What questions do you hope to answer?
• HOW: How do you expect to conduct your inquiry?  How will you organize your inquiry?  What tools do you need to answer your major questions?
•  WHO: Who is the audience for your research?  Will it be undertaken and presented in a manner that is understandable to your audience?

FACILITIES AND COSTS

The workshop will take place on the campus of Georgia Tech in Atlanta.  A registration fee of approximately $400 will cover lodging and selected meals.  Students (or their home institutions) will be expected to provide their own transportation to Atlanta, and laptop computers.  Internet access will be provided by Georgia Tech.  Limited partial scholarships funded by ACSP may be available. Home institutions are encouraged to assist students with costs.

APPLICATIONS

Applications for participation in the workshop are available at www.acsp.org, and are due to the workshop organizers by March 8 (extended deadline).   Applicants will be expected to submit a completed application form together with a resume, statement of interest discussing why they expect the workshop to be useful to them, and a letter of support by their principal dissertation advisor.  Applications will be reviewed by the ACSP PhD Workshop Committee and applicants will be notified of acceptance or otherwise by 1 April 10.

DISSERTATION PROSPECTUS

Those selected to participate must submit a 5-page dissertation research prospectus or summary no later than 15 May 10.  These will be distributed to all participating students and faculty prior to the workshop, so this deadline is firm.  In addition, all participants will make a 10-minute, 5-slide maximum presentation of their research on the first day of the workshop. 

FURTHER INFORMATION

For additional information, check www.acsp.org , or contact: Dracy Blackwell, dracy.blackwell@coa.gatech.edu, +1.404.894.2352. 

DRAFT WORKSHOP AGENDA

Wednesday, June 23, 2010 7:00-9:00 Opening Reception

 Thursday, June 24, 2010

Day 2:  Friday, June 25, 2010

Day 3: Saturday, June 26, 2010                              

Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning

2010 PhD Workshop Application

 PERSONAL INFORMATION

ACADEMIC INFORMATION

FUNDING

Please return an electronic copy of this form to dracy.blackwell@coa.gatech.edu together with copies of the following items: (1) Resume; (2) Letter of support from Faculty Advisor; and (3) Summary of why you would like to participate in this workshop (1 page)

All items must be submitted by Monday, March 8, 2010 (deadline extened). Applications will be reviewed shortly thereafter. Selected applicants will be notified of their acceptance on or before April 1, 2010.

IFES is pleased to announce its annual Manatt Democracy Studies Fellowship Program. Mr. Manatt, former U.S. Ambassador to the Dominican Republic and former Chair of IFES’ Board of Directors, and his wife Kathleen fund one fellowship (6-8 weeks, dates flexible) each year exclusively for graduate students at universities in the American Midwest. A PDF flyer and application are available at http://www.ifes.org/fellowships-manatt.html. Please distribute these widely.
 
The Manatt Fellow receives a stipend of $5,000 and works in our international headquarters in Washington, DC. Fellows are housed in IFES’ F. Clifton White Applied Research Center and benefit from access to IFES experts, IFES’ online Virtual Resource Center collection, and proximity to the various libraries and organizations of Washington.
 
Eligibility rules:
1)      Applicants must be returning graduate students in social science or public policy fields;
2)      Ph.D. candidates must have not yet completed their dissertations;
3)      Applications must be emailed or postmarked by 2 April 2010 to manattfellowship@ifes.org;
4)      Students must be attending a university in the American Midwest (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, or Wisconsin).
 
Founded in 1987, IFES is an international, nonprofit organization providing professional support to emerging, electoral democracies. IFES currently has programs in over 20 countries supporting civil society groups, the rule of law, human rights, transparent governance and election administration. The Manatt Fellow will have the opportunity to work and learn with diverse professionals who have extensive experience elections and democratic development.
 
Again, I encourage you to share this opportunity with your staff and students. Feel free to contact me at manattfellowship@ifes.org for additional information.
 
Sincerely,
Jack Santucci
Research Associate
F. Clifton White Applied Research Center
International Foundation for Electoral Systems
(202) 350-6746
manattfellowship@ifes.org