MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR
Dear Friends and Supporters,
Since its inception in 2001, the Hatfield School of Government (HSOG) has been an academic institution deeply connected to serving the community. Founded on the late Senator Mark Hatfield’s legacy and public service values, we are proud to showcase in this newsletter how HSOG is working to fulfill its founding mission to unite the rigor and excellence of its academic programs with impactful practice through an array of innovative and effective centers and institutes to fully embody PSU's motto, “Let Knowledge Serve the City."
Laurel Singer
Interim Director, Hatfield School of Government (HSOG)
Executive Director, National Policy Consensus Center (NPCC)
Highlights from the Hatfield School of Government
• Four HSOG programs were among those to be nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Report. The school received #49 In Best Public Affairs Programs, #17 in Local Government Management, #24 in Nonprofit Management, and #10 in Urban Policy.
• A new “Hatfield Futures” Competition will engage teams of youth from around the state in a contest to present policy recommendations based on the challenges and opportunities Oregon will be facing by the year 2050: climate change, houselessness, mental health, and employment. Student teams will work with coaches and PSU scholars to imagine and develop community engagement ideas and policy proposal presentations for an event on campus in April.
• HSOG was selected as one of the universities to offer the Young Southeast Asian Leadership Initiative (YSEALI) in Civic Engagement and awarded a grant from the US State Department. We hosted 21 young leaders from 8 countries—Myanmar, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Laos, Philippines and Timor-Leste—and provided programming over 5 weeks in October 2022.
• CPS Senior Fellow, Stephanie F. Singer, has received the Innovation Award from the Election Verification Network (EVN). The award recognizes "path-breaking product development that greatly facilitates robust election verification and auditing." Singer will receive the award at the Election Verification Network 2023 Annual Conference: Building Trust Across Divides, Lessons from the 2022 Elections from March 16-17 in Washington, D.C.
• The establishment of the Mark O. Hatfield Cybersecurity and Cyber Defense Policy Center was endorsed by the PSU Faculty Senate on October 4, 2022 and concurred by the Provost the same day. The Center received an earmark (endorsed by Oregon’s Senators Wyden and Merkley) from the US Congress in the amount of $600,000 for local government workforce training in cybersecurity resilience from 2022-2025.
• The Othering & Belonging Institute (OBI) at UC Berkeley put out a call to scholars, activists, artists, policymakers, and everyday people to share their experiences putting OBI's research into action in their communities. Wendy Willis, Director of Oregon's Kitchen Table, submitted "Making Democracy Better in Oregon" which was included in the 15 inspiring stories featured in OBI's Impact Stories series.
• HSOG submitted a $10 million proposal to establish a Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Center (TCTAC) for AK, ID, OR, and WA. Funded by the Environmental Protection Agency and US Department of Energy for over five years, the grant will focus on underserved communities where environmental, health, and economic burdens and capacity constraints co-occur. This includes Tribal and Indigenous communities, Black, Latinx, immigrant, and disabilities communities, especially in remote and rural areas.
Faculty News
• In November 2022, Joshua Eastin, Associate Professor and Chair of Political Science, and a colleague completed a stint of fieldwork in rural Peru that examined how changes in local livelihoods and security dynamics influence individuals' decisions to join community self-defense militias in conflict-affected areas. The work involved interviews and surveys with militia members, local leaders, civilians, and military commanders in the mountains and jungles of Ayacucho, and is a follow up to similar projects conducted in the Philippines in 2017 and 2019. Insights from both cases will be included in a new book he's co-authoring on the lives and livelihoods of self-defense force members. Dr. Eastin also delivered the Keynote Address at the IEA-UNDP-WB Conference: “Understanding the Gender and Climate Change Nexus.”
• Bruce Gilley spent November working with PSU partner universities in Thailand and Vietnam. He served as conference rapporteur for the 7th International Conference on Local Government hosted by Khon Kaen University’s College of Local Administration and co-authored an op-ed with the college dean in the authoritative Bangkok Post on digital governance. In Vietnam, he gave talks on public finance, cost-benefit analysis, and public-private partnerships at the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City, and worked with the UEH School of Government on the creation of a Master of Political Science program.
New Faculty in the Hatfield School of Government
Safia Abukar Farole is a second-year Assistant Professor in both Political Science and International and Global Studies. Her research area is on politics and governance in Sub-Saharan Africa, focusing specifically on local elections, local government, and party politics in South Africa. She recently published a single-authored paper in the journal Comparative Politics, examining how local electoral institutions impact candidate selection by political parties in South Africa. She also co-authored an article in the journal Global Studies Quarterly on the impact of the pandemic on subnational political competition around the world.
Rafeel Wasif, faculty specializing in nonprofit management and leadership, started in Spring 2022. He received his doctorate from University of Washington and joined PSU after serving as a Postdoctoral researcher at Indiana University-Purdue University. His research focuses on the muslim charity giving, and he is originally from Pakistan.
Frankline Muthomi, faculty specializing in budget, finance and civic engagement, started in Fall 2022. He received his doctorate from Northern Illinois University. His research is focused on citizen's budgetary choice, and he is originally from Kenya.
Updates from our Centers and Institutes
The Centers and Institutes of the Hatfield School connect knowledge and capacity to the broader community. They serve as urban laboratories where academic research and practical application meet to solve wicked problems in our region and beyond.
• The Center for Public Service (CPS) is excited to announce we now have agreements with the League of Oregon Cities and Special Districts Association of Oregon that enable members to contract for PSU professional services through a simple task order, rather than going through a more involved intergovernmental agreement process. CPS has engaged around 30 undergraduate and graduate students in paid positions supporting over 30 applied research projects completed or in-process this fiscal year.
• Additionally, CPS is actively seeking sponsors for our 2023-24 cohort of Public Service Fellows! Please view this year's talent bank and learn more about becoming a sponsor or fellow. Last year, we recruited and placed 14 Hatfield Resident and Public Service Fellows, who supported projects working with sponsors including the City of Portland, Metro, Oregon Health Authority, and Oregon Department of Human Services.
• The Institute for Tribal Government’s 2022-23 professional Certificate in Tribal Relations cohort members just traveled to Washington D.C. for the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) Conference. Members had memorable and immersive experiences, including an Indigenous tour of D.C., meeting tribal leadership, and attending the State of Indian Nations address (SOIN).
• The Nonprofit Institute’s partnership with the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) resulted in 29 participants completing the Professional Certificate in Nonprofit Evaluation in 2022. Most participants received funding support from OHA to participate and evaluated the impact COVID-19 had on their programs. The Institute submitted a project report to OHA entitled “Nonprofit Capacity Building Through Program Evaluation: The Nonprofit Institute Professional Program Evaluation Program.” Additionally, the Institute completed an assessment project and submitted a report to OHA entitled “Disaster Communication with African, Black Immigrant and Refugee Communities.”
• Community Environmental Services has been assisting Metro with improving recycling services in multifamily housing. CES is one of three providers updating decals and signage at 6,000+ multifamily waste enclosures while collecting data that will be used to estimate the percentage of multi-family homes with adequate service.
• The National Policy Consensus Center (NPCC) finished off 2022 having supported more than 60 impactful collaborative governance efforts through its Oregon Solutions, Oregon Consensus, and Oregon Kitchen Table. Some of our featured projects include The Elliott State Research Forest Advisory Committee, Mt Hood/Government Camp Rest Area Redevelopment, Clatsop Plains Elk Collaborative, The Blue Mountains Intergovernmental Council (BIC), and Butte Falls Community Forest Project.
• The Center for Women’s Leadership (CWL) is once again part of the HSOG, and this last year has been an exciting time of expansion. CWL has doubled its program participants, hosted hundreds of people at community events, and strengthened partnerships both regionally and nationally. Here are some of the year's highlights:
» Worked with 22 community leaders and a sharp advocacy group to secure $1 million in legislative funding to 1) expand NEW Leadership Oregon Programming and 2) respond to how the pandemic has impacted women leaders in Oregon.
» Solidarity in Sovereignty is a five-week teach-in developed in partnership with local women Indigenous leaders focused on educating our community about under-discussed issues affecting Oregon’s Indigenous communities.
» Hosted approximately 150 people in partnership with Oregon Historical Society to launch Governor Barbara Roberts book, A Voice for Equity.
» Convened approximately 120 people for a Celebration of Life to remember the leadership and legacy of Congresswoman Elizabeth Furse.
» Completed NEW Leadership Oregon Program Evaluation which has allowed us to reconnect, understand the experiences, and demographically map our 600+ alums.
» Launched a 5-part virtual training series called Intersectionality Works! with a cohort of 25 and plans to offer additional funded cohorts in Spring of 2023.
Professional Education Opportunities
Executive Seminar in Natural Resources
Professional education program for mid-career natural resource professionals that centers on live case studies of complex natural resource issues as catalysts for advanced leadership development and enhanced understanding of governance principals.
→ Executive Seminar Program: Case 3
May 15-19, 2023 in the Mid-Willamette Valley
Restoring the Willamette River: From Mitigation to Stewardship
Professional Development Course: Cost-Benefit Analysis, Non-Market Valuation and Empirical Methods
Provides working professionals with tools to interpret, set up, and implement cost-benefit analysis of public sector issues, estimate monetary values of services that are not bought-and-sold, and conduct impact evaluation of programs. Takes place over four Fridays in May 2023.
Executive Master of Public Administration (EMPA) Program
Offers an intensive learning program specifically designed for experienced professionals who seek to excel in advanced leadership roles.
2023 NEW Leadership® Oregon (NLO)
An inclusive, intersectional feminist leadership program designed to help Oregon college students develop the skills they need to lead in any context where their leadership is needed.
Turn Up Your Voice
A leadership program from CWL and Rural Development Initiatives (RDI) for emerging and established rural Oregon women leaders. The program starts on March 22.