USC State Capital Center Opportunities
SPPD has a long history of providing training to those who possess or will assume leadership roles in the State Capitol. The University of Southern California maintains a facility at the USC State Capital in Sacramento at which MPP students may take a particular class or spend a semester.
Faculty are drawn from the USC tenure track faculty as well as from the local policy making community. Classes in the policy field are offered each semester. Jon Brown, President of the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities teaches the fall class in Advocacy. Program and Policy Evaluation is also offered in the fall with Professor Joe Wholey, Senior Evaluator at the Governmental Accounting Office in Washington, DC leading the class. Richard Dixon, Chair, Idea Association, former Chief Administrative Officer, Los Angeles County, leads the Financial Management and Budgeting class in the fall and the spring.
During the spring semester, Kevin Starr, USC University Professor and California State Librarian Emeritus, offers Intergovernmental Management: the State Perspective. Karen Spencer, Legislative Advocate and President of Spencer-Roberts and Associates teaches Political Leadership also in the spring.
In the summer, Dora Kingsley, President and Chief Operation Officer of Trenton West, a political research firm, offers the Political Management: Theory and Applied Techniques. Rich Callahan, Associate Dean, teaches Cross-Sectoral Governance in the summer and the fall. Tom Lando, City Manager of Chico, offers Local Government Administration in the summer.
MPP students may also take advantage of the networking opportunities in the California State policy-making community by participating in internships during the summer or during the fall or spring semester, alumni networking events, events at the State Capitol. Networking events include the annual Capitol Reception, Career Explorations, and several events sponsored by the American Society for Public Administration, the League of Women Voters, and other organizations. Networking events are facilitated by SPPD's Director of Recruitment and Career Services at the USC State Capital Center.