Delaware Association for Public Administration 2011 National Conference in Baltimore
—by Jonathan Justice | download PDF 
ASPA's 2011 national conference will be in Baltimore, Md., on March 11-15, with the theme “Public Administration Without Borders.” There are a number of attractive opportunities for DAPA to be actively involved. Because the conference is so nearby, there will be a number of ways for us to help host the event. Because our own Dr. Maria Aristigueta, professor of Urban Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Delaware, is co-chairing the conference program committee, there will be abundant opportunities to participate in organizing the conference's content as well. Within the next few weeks, we will be getting and sharing with everybody more detailed information about how DAPA and individual members can take advantage of this.
The Baltimore chapter and host committee welcome our participation in helping host the conference and raising funds. This gives us an opportunity to strengthen our visibility and connections with the national organization and other chapters. Typical activities for local chapters and their members hosting ASPA conferences include staffing the information desk, helping with local logistics, offering advice to out-of-town conference participants, and securing financial and in-kind contributions from local sponsors. DAPA President Julia O’Hanlon and I spoke with Baltimore host committee chair Anne Cotton at the 2010 conference in San José in April to begin discussing some possibilities. We will be soliciting volunteers to lead this effort at some point, but don’t wait to volunteer if you would like to take on a leadership role!
The conference program committee will be co-chaired by Aristigueta and Dr. Geert Bouckaert of the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium. The program committee works to plan the substantive content of the conference—panels, workshops, roundtables, lectures, and so forth. This is a large undertaking, with real time constraints, so Aristigueta and Bouckaert will certainly welcome active participation and help. One part of the program of particular interest to student members will be the Student Summit taking place on Saturday, March 12, 2011. Participating in planning and organizing this daylong event, which brings together students from throughout the U.S. and other countries, is a great opportunity for students to make a range of professional connections and have some fun at the same time. (I helped organize this activity in 2001 when I was a student myself, and I can tell you that it was a great time.)
—by Jonathan Justice