Introduction to the Issue

On behalf of the editorial team, our editorial board and the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration, we would like to thank you for reading the latest issue of the Journal of Public Affairs Education (JPAE). The issues address perhaps the most important challenge facing public administration, the public’s distrust of government. As is clearly known, the public’s trust in our governing institutions, especially the national government, is in peril. Effective public administration relies on our institutions being trusted. Going forward, our field needs to do a better job building public trust in our institutions. This JPAE issue starts with three articles that will help public affairs programs teach current and future public servants the importance of trust and how to build it in our communities.

In an essay, covering ideas in his book, Can Governments Earn Our Trust? Kettl (2018) writes “For those with a passion for good governance, no story is more discouraging than the steady decline of trust in government.” We certainly agree with this assessment and Kettl’s ideas on how to address issues of trust in government. Kettl argues how public affairs programs can teach students to earn trust by explaining the importance of innovative strategies that increase performance and build trust. Students need to know that these strategies are achievable, and they need to be presented with a “long historical sweep of history” on the topic to understand that some distrust will always occur.

Next, Edlin and Dolamore (2018) examine how empathy of public constituents can help distill public service values and in turn build trust. The authors survey public affairs faculty to learn their views on empathy and how they teach the value to their students. In issue’s last article specifically on trust, Roberts (2018) details how the nation’s alarmingly political polarization is harming the public’s trust in bureaucracy and public servants. To address this “moral” issue, Roberts argues that public affairs programs need to teach current and future public servants about political polarization and how to push back against organizational misconduct.

The issue turns to other relevant topics in public affairs education that also affects trust, either directly or indirectly. Evans (2018) reviews gender representation in ethic courses. She uses representative bureaucracy theory in this examination. From her analysis of the courses syllabi, Evans finds that instructors are not ensuring that there is a balance of male and female authors in the course outlines. Next, McCandless (2018) conducts a content analysis of the core courses offered by 120 MPA programs and finds that the field’s teaching of social equity needs to be improved. To offer guidance, the author discusses the structure of his social equity course.

As editors, we hope to increase JPAE’s coverage of international public affairs. Haskell (2018) writes about the 154 graduate programs in public affairs based on Mexican universities and colleges. The author argues that closer engagement with NASPAA and other accreditors will improve public affairs education in these programs. In the closing article in this issue, Herbel (2018) argues for an integration of humanities in public affairs education. He does this by demonstrating how the intellectual support of the humanities will strengthen public administration, detailing how the field’s curriculum currently does cover the humanities, and describing how the field can inject more humanity-based material into courses.

We conclude the issue with two book reviews. In the first review, Schwaeble (2018) reviews Making Sense of Teaching in Difficult Times edited by Penny Jane Burke and Suellen Shay. The book includes 10 chapters on issues affecting higher education and instruction. In the issue’s second review, Fleming (2018) discusses Reflections on Academic Lives: Identities, Struggles, and Triumphs in Graduate School and Beyond edited by Staci M. Zavattaro and Shannon M. Orr. The personal reflections deal with progressing through graduate school, obtaining an academic job, managing life and work, and other issues facing academics. Fleming notes how the “openness” of the reflections and their subjects will help graduate students and aspiring academics navigate the academic world.