What's New at the School of Urban Affairs & Public Policy

March 10, 2008--Nine Delaware communities have been chosen to participate in a comprehensive revitalization initiative called Blueprint Communities, designed to help older neighborhoods get their second wind and plan for community renewal more effectively. The program was unveiled by Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner, U.S. Sen. Thomas Carper (D-Del.) and U.S. Rep. Michael Castle (R-Del.) on Monday, March 10, at the University of Delaware's Roselle Center for the Arts.

Sponsored by the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh (FHLBank) and UD's Center for Community Research and Service, the new Blueprint Communities initiative provides each team with community development training valued at approximately $25,000, a mini-grant and improved access to funding sources.

Feb. 25, 2008--Raheemah Jabbar-Bey, assistant professor in the School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy and director of the Community-Based Development Training Program in UD's Center for Community Research and Service, has been selected for the YWCA Delaware Service Award.

The award was given at the YWCA's Evening of Style, on Feb. 9, at the Hotel DuPont in Wilmington, honoring “women in the community who embody power, style and brilliance,” according to Chaneta Brooks Montoban of the YWCA board of directors. In a letter to Jabbar-Bey she wrote, “Out of the overwhelming number of nominations, the committee felt that you exemplified what this award stands for. You truly deserve this recognition.”

Jabbar-Bey was “honored for her efforts to identify important community issues, especially challenges facing those not part of the economic and social mainstream.” In her position at UD, “she seeks to empower young people to consider causes and effects of social and economic issues and to affect positive and sustainable change,” according to the YWCA.

Dec. 18, 2007--UD's 2007-08 legislative fellows begin their six-month apprenticeships with the Delaware General Assembly on Jan. 8.

Legislative fellows are selected through the Legislative Fellows Program, jointly sponsored by the state legislature and UD's Institute for Public Administration. The 12 graduate and undergraduate students selected as 2007-08 fellows will get on-the-job experience by combining their academic research with the research needs of the General Assembly.

Legislative fellows work in Dover 20 hours a week from January through June. While they work for the legislature, they earn a stipend and take a three-credit graduate seminar, "State and Local Government: Management and Policy.”

Students are selected through a University-wide competition. Those selected have the opportunity to observe and contribute to the political decision-making process and the General Assembly gets the benefit of the research skills of the fellows and University resources.

Through their nonpartisan, in-depth research, fellows assist legislators in addressing critical issues facing the state. In recent years, fellows have worked in areas as diverse as land-use planning, education reform and juvenile justice.

Dec. 14, 2007--Martha Corrozi, policy specialist with UD's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), received the 2007 American Water Resources Association (AWRA) A. Ivan Johnson Outstanding Young Professional Award at AWRA's national conference, Nov. 12-15, in Albuquerque, N.M. The award is given to a young professional who has demonstrated outstanding achievements, talents and leadership potential throughout his or her professional activities related to water resources.

AWRA is a professional association for the advancement of men and women in water resources management, research and education. Corrozi co-founded the Delaware AWRA chapter and recently completed her term as its first president.

A watershed analyst with IPA's Water Resources Agency, she is responsible for providing regional watershed technical, policy and research support to state and local governments, IPA staff and nonprofit organizations in Delaware and the Delaware Valley. Corrozi received a master of public administration degree with a specialty in water resources from UD.

Nov. 20, 2007--Arno Loessner, associate professor emeritus of urban affairs and public policy and faculty fellow emeritus of the Center for International Studies, is UD's Romanian connection. He has visited Bobes-Bolyai University (BBU) in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, five times, since 2002 and is scheduled to return again with 11 UD public policy graduate students in January. Two of his visits were supported by the Fulbright Program, one by the Hewlett Foundation and two by BBU. In recognition of his service to BBU, Loessner was awarded an honorary degree in October.

The 11 students will participate together with BBU graduate students in a joint service learning program with the public administration department in BBU's Faculty of Political, Administrative and Communication Sciences. UD students will engage with Romanian colleagues in meetings with local public authorities and nonprofit institutions to see how civil society in Romania is evolving to meet community needs. This comparative analysis will be useful for understanding cultural dimensions of public administration and a better understanding of the situation in both Romania and the United States, Loessner said.

October 19, 2007--John Byrne, Distinguished Professor of Public Policy and director of UD's Center for Energy and Environmental Policy, along with Frederick “Fritz” Nelson, professor of geography and director of UD's Permafrost Group, are members of a working group within the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which was awarded the 2007 Nobel Peace prize jointly with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore.

IPCC, a science body advising the United Nations on the dangers of global warming, was established in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in recognition of the problem of potential global climate change.

"Selecting the IPCC for the Nobel Peace Prize underscores the need for all of us in all of our communities to use the gift of thought to seek peace not only among ourselves but with the entire life web,” said Byrne, who also is a distinguished professor in the School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy. “The greater impact is likely to be on policy makers at all levels and in all countries who should recognize the urgent need for action to restore peace to the life web.”

Byrne said the UD Center for Energy and Environmental Policy will continue its research on climate justice, investigating economic and policy strategies to meet the needs of a sustainable and equitable future.

Excerpted from UDaily article by Martin Mbugua. Photo by Kathy F. Atkinson. Read the entire article.

Sept. 20, 2007--UD's School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy (SUAPP) received the 2007 Academic Excellence Award from the American Public Human Services Association (APHSA) at its annual fall conference this week in Arlington, Va.

Maria Aristigueta, SUAPP director, professor of public administration and policy scientist; Steven Peuquet, director of the UD Center for Community Research and Service; and Edward Freel, policy scientist in the Institute of Public Administration, accepted the award for the school from Karryl McManus, deputy secretary for the Delaware Department of Heath and Social Services.

“We were pleased to be recognized,” Aristigueta said, “This is a highly competitive award, and we were told by APHSA officials that UD was selected from several other major universities which were nominated.”

APHSA is a nonprofit, bipartisan organization of individuals and agencies concerned with human services with the goal of developing, promoting and implementing public human service policies and practices to improve the health and well-being of families, children and adults. The Academic Excellence Award is given to a human service, social work or social service department or program within a nationally accredited college or university that has distinguished itself in academic achievements.

APHSA cited SUAPP for developing “a cutting-edge approach to public affairs education by integrating academic excellence with professional practice into its core curriculum.” APHSA described the Delaware Model, “an exciting and innovative paradigm that combines theory and practice,” noting that graduate students are not limited to research and study but have assistantships with different agencies, which benefits both students and the nonprofit and human services agencies they serve.

Vincent Meconi, secretary of the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services, nominated SUAPP for the award and pointed out that the school's graduates serve at all levels of government and in the nonprofit sector. SUAPP has been a “major leader in the social welfare and health policy arena,” Meconi said. He said one of the greatest needs is for “managers who can be flexible and creative in the face of today's climate of ever-increasing resource and personnel challenges” and in this area SUAPP “excels.”

Jan. 11, 2007--In 1841, Delawarean John Alston, a member of the Appoquinimink Friends Meeting House in Odessa, wrote, “Oh Lord...enable me to keep my heart and house open to receive thy servants that they may rest in their travels at this house....”

Alston, a Quaker, was praying for strength to continue his work as a “station master” for the Underground Railroad (UGRR), a network of sympathizers that helped slaves escape bondage in the south. The Quakers were an essential part of the Underground Railroad in Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania having condemned slavery in 1754, more than 100 years before slavery was abolished in the U.S.

“Delaware was a last link in the trip from the south to Pennsylvania, New York and freedom,” David L. Ames, professor of urban affairs and geography and director of UD's Center for Historic Architecture and Design, said.

“Delaware was a slave state, but Wilmington was an abolitionist center and Kent County had a large free black population concentrated near Camden in Star Hill and Brinkley Hill, which provided a relatively safe place of rest before the last leg to Wilmington and Pennsylvania or even to New Jersey across the Delaware River,” Ames said.

Jan. 10, 2007--The University of Delaware Center for Community Research and Service (CCRS) is one of UD's leading community outreach and support resources. It recently expanded the capability and offerings of its Nonprofit Resource Library by being designated as a Cooperating Collection of the Foundation Center of New York. Founded in 1956, the Foundation Center is the foremost authority on U.S. philanthropy and grant-makers.

Located in the Community Service Building where 79 nonprofit organizations are housed at 100 West 10th St., Wilmington, the CCFS library can now offer free access to the Foundation's Center core collection, which includes detailed information on more than 80,000 grant-makers and useful information on how to apply for grants. The Foundation Center has five regional library/learning centers and a national network of more than 275 Cooperation Collections, which hold training sessions on how to effectively use Foundation Center resources.

“We have worked hard for several years to become a Cooperating Collection,” Melissa Watson, training coordinator, said. “We are thrilled to receive recognition and reach this status. Most importantly, becoming a Cooperating Collection of the Foundation Center will greatly enhance opportunities for seeking grants and funding support for the nonprofit organizations that we serve in the area.”

Founded in 1972 as the Urban Agent Program, CCRS provides professional development education, training and technical assistant to nonprofit organizations, focusing on social and human services, community development and housing. CCRS offers certificate programs in nonprofit management, community-based development, faith-based community development and other areas.

As a University of Delaware graduate student, Garrett Wozniak spent the past two years working as a legislative fellow with the state Senate's Republican caucus. Starting in January, Wozniak, 25, will be in charge of day-to-day operations for the Delaware Republican Party.

"It shows we trained him well," Senate Minority Leader Charles Copeland, R-West Farms, quipped after Tuesday's planning meeting.

Strine said Wozniak was a logical choice to succeed outgoing executive director David Crossan Sr. as Wozniak wowed party members during the campaign season with his hard work on legislative races around the state.

"He got a late start because of his legislative duties," Strine said. "But he impressed people with his hard work. ... He was a quick study and everyone was impressed with him. He was a natural choice."

Wozniak said he wanted the job because he believes in the Republican message and is looking forward to a shot at helping the GOP regain its footing. During last month's election, Ferris Wharton lost his bid for attorney general to Democrat Beau Biden, the party saw three more seats in the GOP-controlled House slip into Democratic hands giving the party its slimmest margin since before the 2002 election, and Republicans were unable to cut into the Democrat's 13-8 edge in the Senate.

"It's a challenge," Wozniak said. "But I believe in the Republican message and I think we can win."

PhD alumnus Clyde Bishop named US Ambassador to the Republic of the Marshall Islands

Lessons in diplomacy: ambassador's path winds through Newark's days of segregation and integration to a world of opportunity

Newark schools had just been integrated, and he was the only African-American in his class.

And, at the conclusion of the first marking period, his teacher, Mr. Bennett, stood the 12-year-old up at the front of the room.

"The teacher acknowledged my A average," Bishop, 64, says. "There were others that got A's, too, but he deliberately pointed me out. I'll never forget that."

Bishop had grown up in a small, black enclave in the segregated Newark of the 1940s, centered on Cleveland Avenue and New London Road just past the railroad tracks.

His father, also named Clyde, died of a stroke when he was 3. During the very year he integrated into the public-school lives of whites his own age, his mother, who had consistently urged education on her children as the way out of poverty, died of the same condition that claimed his father.

Parentless, but with four older sisters -- the youngest of whom, Claudette, was seven years older -- he left Newark soon after his mother died for Japan to live for two years. He moved in with his sister Margaret and her husband, Alfred, who was in the military and stationed there.

Eventually, Bishop would hop around different locations as a teenager, foreshadowing a life in the Foreign Service that brought him to live for several years each in Italy, Hong Kong, India, South Korea, the Dominican Republic and Brazil.

MA alum and PhD student Raina Harper wins national Urban League "Rising Star" award

Money, race and the American dream: Urban League 'Rising Star' Raina Harper focuses civil rights efforts on improving access to financial services

WILMINGTON -- Raina Harper's living room hints of South Africa, from the mustard-yellow walls, leopard-spotted pillows and darkly-colored tapestries to her gold, 3-year-old, 15-pound Chihuahua-terrier she named Nala after a character in the "Lion King."

"I felt like I was home there," she says in a soft, measured voice, of the country where she studied international nonprofit management in 2000. "It was a country in transition, and I met so many people and learned their society. I was depressed when I had to come back to write my master's thesis."

But the rehabbed home the slim 35-year-old doctoral student bought on Madison Street shortly after she returned from Africa is as "urban Wilmington" as one can get, complete with an exposed-brick inside wall that leads to the upstairs.

"I live in west center-city Wilmington, a transitioning neighborhood," Harper says.

On her way to earning a Ph.D. in urban affairs and public policy at the University of Delaware next spring, Harper has worked as a researcher, journalist and a communications officer. She has been a policy advisor to state treasurer Jack Markell as well as to Alabama congressman Artur Davis.

But her concentration has centered of late on financial literacy, arguing that teaching others -- specifically minorities -- to understand the ins and outs of how to handle credit, mortgages and savings is paramount to achieving equality. She recently won the National Urban League's 2006 Rising Star Award for an essay she wrote about the subject.

Oct. 11, 2006--George “Bud” Malone, UD poultry scientist and extension poultry specialist, John Talley, director of the Delaware Geological Survey (DGS), and Kevin Vonck, senior research assistant and deputy state water coordinator, received the 2006 Ratledge Family Awards for Delaware Public Service on Oct. 5.

Jeffrey A. Raffel, director of the School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy and chair of the Ratledge Family award committee, said Malone, Vonck and Talley are an inspiration to others. “Our recipients have dedicated their lives to public service,” Raffel said. “For them, it's a calling, not a job.”

The Ratledge family established the award to recognize the contributions of University of Delaware community members to the well-being of all Delawareans. The $1,000 award is intended to encourage and recognize significant public service by faculty, staff and students.

Kevin Vonck was the youngest person and only UD student ever elected to the Newark City Council. While on council, Vonck established programs to enhance the relations between students and residents and promoted policies to increase pedestrian, bicycle and public safety awareness. Vonck graduated from UD in 2001, received a master of public adminstration degree in 2003 and is currently working on a doctorate in urban affairs and public policy.

As a research assistant in the Water Resources Agency at UD, Vonck made significant contributions to the quality of life in Deaware and increased awareness of the critical need for effective environmental governance. He has researched and edited publications on drought management, watershed management/restoration and source water protection. Vonck has streamlined regional water supply and demand databases and developed floodplain atlases for each of Delaware's counties, and his presentations have advanced knowledge and understanding of innovative solutions to environmental problems and other water resource issues.

Vonck said he is grateful to his colleagues at the Water Resources Agency for their help and support. “I think they're ready to get rid of me,” Vonck said. “My first year, there was the drought of the century. My second year, there was the flood of the century. My third year, there was the snowstorm of the century.”

Raffel said the work of the award recipients have influenced different areas of the state. “Our recipients have really impacted the state of Delaware,” he said. “They have improved our economy, our schools, our environment and our lives.”

Sept. 6, 2006--Three University of Delaware graduate students got hands-on experience in Washington, D.C., this summer while working at the National Conference of State Legislatures, Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner's office in Washington, and the Senate Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information and International Security.

Sallyann Christabel Bergh, Craig de Mariana Aleman and Erik Hopkins, all graduate students pursuing master's degrees in public administration in the School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy, part of the College of Human Services, Education and Public Policy (CHEP), were the first students to participate in a new 10-week Washington Fellows Program, which is modeled after UD's Legislative Fellows Program in Dover.

Selection for the summer program, which is sponsored by UD's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), was based on a written test and a panel interview with representatives from the respective offices in Washington. The students, who received a stipend and worked 35 hours a week, each wrote papers on their experiences and earned two academic credits.

“It's an opportunity for the students to gain professional experience and also an opportunity to experience life in Washington, D.C.,” Ed Freel, policy scientist in IPA, said. “Whether they eventually work in Washington or for state or local government, this program will certainly increase their value as employees in the future. They will have the Washington experience to enrich their perception and knowledge.”

July 25, 2006--Bethany Welch, a UD doctoral student from Rochester, N.Y., received the 2006 Spirit of Service Award from the Corporation for National and Community Service in June.

Welch, a research assistant in the College of Human Services, Education and Public Policy's Center for Community Research and Service, was one of only 16 individuals nationwide to receive a Spirit of Service Award.

Welch won the award for her work through AmeriCorps' VISTA program at the Cardinal Bevilacqua Community Center of Catholic Social Services in Philadelphia, where she recruited more than 230 volunteers, developed program curriculum, wrote and received grants to support the center's programs, initiated a new marketing system and managed beautification, cultural and educational projects.

Since coming to UD in fall of 2004, Welch has been putting her knowledge and experience in the areas of service learning and community organizing to work as a research assistant with the Center for Community Research and Service, and she continues to volunteer at Cardinal Bevilacqua Community Center. “This experience remains and informs every dimension of my research,” she said.

Four incoming MPA students complete Public Allies leadership development program
Adapted from a UDaily article by Martin Mbugua

July 2006--Four incoming Master of Public Administration (MPA) students graduated from Public Allies Delaware, a leadership development program that prepares young adults for careers in public service, at a ceremony in Wilmington June 29.

Emily Cress, Carson Henry, Emily Poag, and Andrew Soper were among 25 students in the program's 12th class who received certificates at the end of their 10-month apprenticeships.

Public Allies Delaware is an AmeriCorps program of UD's Center for Community Research and Service, the University's focal point for community engagement and action. The program serves as a resource for young adults, ages 18-30, interested in service and community building by linking agencies that serve local communities with young leaders, who receive leadership training.

This year's class logged more than 45,000 hours of service with organizations as diverse as the Brandywine Zoo, Habitat for Humanity, 4-H after-school programs, the Sussex County AIDS Council, AIDS Delaware, Delaware Breast Cancer Coalition and Delaware Money School.

Andrew Soper, an incoming MPA student from Wilmington, said his experience with Public Allies led to his decision to seek a career in public service.

“It absolutely changed the way I look at things,” Soper said. “Before I joined Public Allies, I wanted to go into the private sector, but now I want to go to public service. The amount of diversity in the class, from different backgrounds to religions and races, helped me change my mind.”

Soper worked with the New Castle County Cooperative Extension/4-H at UD. He led groups during homework help and free times and created lesson plans for 4-H enrichment exercises. He also coordinated special events, including a camping trip and an open house.

Steve Eidelman Elected Vice President of the American Association on Mental Retardation (AAMR)

June 2006--Steven M. Eidelman, the Edelsohn Chair in Disabilities Studies, was elected in May as Vice President of the American Association on Mental Retardation (AAMR). Founded in 1876, AAMR promotes progressive policies, sound research, effective practices, and universal human rights for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

MPA students share reflections with Senator Carper after spring break trips to
Katrina affected areas

April 28, 2006--U.S. Sen. Thomas Carper (D-Del.) met with approximately 35 UD students and community volunteers and led a panel discussion about Hurricane Katrina recovery efforts on Friday morning, April 28, in UD's Center for Composite Materials.

The meeting, which began with presentations by four graduate students enrolled in UD's School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy who volunteered in the Hurricane Katrina clean-up and rebuilding effort over spring break, took the form of an informal dialogue among Carper and members of the audience, in which questions were posed and experiences shared.

“I just want to say a very special thank you,” Carper said, after listening to presenters Jared Brewster from Columbus, Ohio, Kevin Kovaleski from Indiana, Pa., Gordana Copic from Croatia and Jonathan Rifkin from Elkton, Md.

“Thank you for taking the time--your time--to help people you've never met and will probably never meet again,” Carper said. “As future policymakers, you have taken a big step in leadership, and effective leadership, especially in times of disaster, is, as we all know, key.”

Carper talked about his own recent visit to New Orleans, discussed possible solutions for better debris removal and recycling programs in the hardest-hit areas and commented on the need for implementation of a national service program for youth.

03/2004--In the newly released U.S. News & World Report rankings of professional schools, the University of Delaware’s School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy ranked 35th in the nation (tied) among the 253 other Public Affairs programs that were ranked. The new rankings represent a steady increase for School, which climbed from 41st (tied) in 2001, when the opinion survey was last released and the School made the “Top 50” list for the first time.

In the 2004 survey, the School of Urban Affairs and Public Policy at UD's overall rating climbed from 3.1 to 3.3 on the rating scale. (Five is the highest rating possible and 5 = distinguished; 4 = strong; 3 = good; 2 = adequate; 1 = marginal.) The top ten schools averaged about 4.0 on the scale and with two exceptions, this was as great a gain as any other school in the “Top 50.”

In the fall of 2003, U.S. News & World Report also asked deans, directors, and senior faculty to select programs in 10 specialty areas in addition to the overall rankings in public affairs master’s programs. Respondents were provided with a list of programs offering the specific specializations.

UD was ranked 9th in the nation in City Management and Urban Policy, maintaining our position in the “Top 10” as in previous surveys.

The University of Delaware’s nonprofit management specialization was ranked as the 14th best program in the U.S., tied with San Francisco State. This is the first ear UD has been recognized in this area.

Across the University, UD’s Engineering College was tied for 48th in the nation and the School of Education was ranked 55th. For individual program rankings at UD see http://www.udel.edu/PR/UDaily/2004/usnews040204.html. The entire list of rankings can be found at the U.S. News Web site.

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