Important: Read and Refer Often to the Information in This Syllabus!

Political Science 4253 (25497): Ethics in Public Service

University of Central Oklahoma (Spring 2008 Syllabus): MWF 11:00 - 11:50 AM

Crosslisted with LEAD 4213 (25499): Ethics and Leadership

[Prerequisite: POL 1113 or LEAD 2213]

ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR:

Dr. Brett S. Sharp, Associate Professor, is Director of Leadership Studies for the University of Central Oklahoma. He has considerable professional and administrative experience in business and government. He received his Ph.D. and Master of Public Administration from the University of Oklahoma and a Bachelor of Science in Political Science/Public Affairs with a minor in Religious Studies from Oklahoma State University. He has done extensive research in leadership and ethics. Dr. Sharp previously taught business ethics at Oklahoma Christian University.

             Contact Hours: MWF 8:30-9:00 AM and Wed 7:00-7:30 PM (and by appointment)

            Office:             Liberal Arts Bldg 102-J (in Political Science suite)             Email: bsharp@ucok.edu

            Telephone:       (405) 974-5526 (with voice mail)                                         Fax:    (405) 974-3823

            Web Site:         http://www.libarts.ucok.edu/political/faculty/sharp             Classroom: LAR 213

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

This course is designed to give students a framework for understanding the unique ethical dilemmas that face leaders whose work will likely impact the public at large. Using a seminar style, this class will examine how administrative work is influenced by culture, religion, organizational dynamics, formal rules, professional standards, business and industry standards, bureaucratic restraints, and democratic norms. The role of legislation will also be examined in its attempt to limit unethical behavior.

Class discussion will be centered around a variety of interesting case studies which illuminate the conflict of values surrounding ethical decisions. Emphasis will also be given to the ethical consequences of policy making decisions such as those affecting the environment and social welfare. A key theme in this course will be the ethical responsibility that leaders must recognize while serving as stewards of the public trust. Ethical concepts and terminology are introduced in an effort to seriously analyze the practical application of ethical practices in the public sector.

 TEACHING METHODS/LEARNING EXPERIENCES:

This class depends on active student participation and includes several case studies and other in-class simulations. Classroom questions and discussion are strongly encouraged. Students will attend lectures and classroom experiences which will orient them to basic concepts and information concerning ethics as applied in the modern work environment. Students are responsible, through self-study and reading assignments, to learn relevant ethical concepts and applications.

Students will also write an essay reacting to the readings as well as a research paper over a public administration ethical issue. The student is responsible for retaining backup copies of all homework assignments turned in. The student should also be aware that some flexibility is retained in the syllabus to accommodate invited speakers and other learning opportunities. Students should also regularly check the professor’s web site for any class announcements.

Course Schedule - Spring 2008

READINGS

Adams, Guy B. & Balfour, Danny L. (2004). Unmasking Administrative Evil (Revised Ed.). New York: Armonk. [Required]

Andre, Claire & Velasquez, Manuel. (1989). “Unmasking the Motives of the Good Samaritan.” Issues in Ethics, 2.1. [Required: Available at http://www.scu.edu/ethics/publications/iie/v2n1/samaritan.html]

Cooper, Terry L. (2006). The Responsible Administrator: An Approach to Ethics for the Administrative Role (5th Ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers. [Required]

Jones, Dan. (2005, November 26). “The Moral Maze.” New Scientist, 188, Issue 2527. [Required: Available at Chambers Library databases]

Sharp, Brett S. and Housel, Steve. (2004, March). “Ghosts in the Bureaucratic Machine: Resurrecting the Principles of Administration in the Oklahoma Health Department.” American Review of Public Administration, 34.1, 20-35. [Required: Available at Chambers Library databases]

Sobel, Rachel K. (2001, November 12). “Mind in a Mirror: Mapping Morality, Awareness, and ‘Self’ in the Brain.” U.S. News & World Report. [Required: Available at Chambers Library databases]

EVALUATION METHODS AND GRADING

            Instructor will determine course grades                 Grading components include:

            using the following scale:                                                     Class Participation                                     10%

                            90 -100        =         A                                             Ethics Article Presentation                         10%

                            80 - 89        =         B                                             Reaction Essay                                           20%

                            70 - 79        =         C                                             Mid-Term Exam                                        20%

                            60 - 69        =         D                                             Research Paper                                           20%

                              0 - 59        =         F                                             Final Exam                                                 20%

CLASS ATTENDANCE & PARTICIPATION

Attendance has its privileges. Class attendance is an important part of succeeding in this class and is expected of all students. Class time provides an opportunity for you to ask questions, clarify issues, and deepen your understanding of the concepts covered in the text. If you are absent, you are responsible for getting any notes, assignments, and schedule changes made on that day. If you come in late, you are responsible for seeing that the attendance record is correct. Above and beyond the expected class attendance, students are required to complete the readings as assigned (see course schedule) prior to the beginning of the class period. Demonstrated mastery of the assigned readings through class discussion is necessary to earn full participation points.

ETHICS ARTICLE PRESENTATION

Each student will select an article or video segment from a credible information source such as a major metropolitan newspaper, television news show, article in a professional trade magazine, or a peer-reviewed journal article. The student’s selection must deal specifically with a contemporary issue of ethics with a significant public service implication (i.e. dealing with government, politics, or the nonprofit sector). The student will then prepare a 2-3 page written summary and analysis of the contents. These article/video reviews should also include 2-3 questions to be posed to the rest of the class in order to stimulate class discussion. The ethics article review will be presented to the rest of the class according to the schedule outlined in the syllabus and as arranged with the instructor. Students will be allowed twenty to twenty-five minutes for their presentation and subsequent class discussion. In-class time for presentation may be compressed or re-arranged by instructor if circumstances warrant. Ethics article presentations will be graded on topic selection, presentation, summary, analysis, and discussion.

REACTION ESSAY

Write a 4-5 page, double-spaced typewritten essay over the assigned readings for this class with particular emphasis on Adams & Balfour’s book, Unmasking Administrative Evil. Your essay should include a concise summary and more extensive analysis of the book with contrasts and comparisons with the other assigned readings. As part of your analysis, answer the following questions within the text of your essay:

            1.         What is the purpose of this book and its central thesis (philosophy or perspective)?

            2.         Does the book achieve its goals?

            3.         What is the method or approach used by the authors to reach their conclusions? Is the approach clearly specified so that its validity can be determined?

            4.         Are the conclusions credible?

            5.         What are the implications for the ethical practice of public administration? What about business?

            6.         What are the primary strengths and weaknesses of the book?

            7.         Would you recommend this book to someone interested in administrative ethics? Why or why not?

            8.         In what ways do the other assigned readings (Cooper, Andre, Jones, and Sobel) shed light on Adams & Balfour’s perspective?

REQUIREMENTS FOR RESEARCH PAPER

Each student will write a 12-15 page, double-spaced paper for this course. You will choose as your topic some issue that directly relates to the application of ethics in an Oklahoma public administration setting. While you must cite sufficient references to make your paper convincing, this assignment requires a minimum of ten references of which at least five (5) must come from refereed (peer-reviewed) journals. Students should follow an accepted style convention such as Chicago/Turabian or APA. The assigned article by Sharp & Housel should be used as a model for this paper. The first draft of the research paper (title page with topic, introduction, and preliminary list of references) is due at the beginning of class, Friday, March 14 and the final version is due at the beginning of class, Friday, May 2. Papers will be graded on topic selection, format, grammar, research documentation, content delivery, analysis, and research quality. Please refer to the discussion of plagiarism in the Academic Integrity Statement attached to the syllabus

EXAMINATIONS

There will be two exams during the semester. Both exams will be comprised of essay, short answer, and/or multiple choice questions. The final exam will be comprehensive. Make up examinations will not be offered except for documented emergencies. Even then, an alternate form of the examination will likely be substituted. In case of school cancellation due to weather or other reasons during the scheduled time for the final exam, university policy will be followed in the assigning of grades, which in the past has included the professor’s best judgment to what the student has earned up until that point. Therefore, not depending upon the final exam to make up for previously poor grades is in your best interest.

EXTRA CREDIT

Students may earn extra credit points by attending and/or participating in the Liberal Arts Student Symposium. Other extra credit assignments, if any, will be announced in class and offered to all students. A maximum amount of 5 percentage points of the total grade will be allowed for extra credit if offered.

ACADEMIC HONESTY

Cheating = Failure (please refer to attached Political Science Department’s Academic Integrity Statement and the University’s Student Information Sheet and Syllabus Attachment). Cheating is unacceptable conduct and will result in an automatic grade of “F” for the course, and be reported to Academic Affairs. Students are required to do all of the work for this class on their own. Copying answers to exercises or examinations from anyone constitutes cheating. Allowing another student to copy one’s answers will be treated as cheating. A student may discuss exercises and case briefs with others before preparing his or her own answers, but the answers must be each student’s own work product.

Consulting with the instructor about any assignment does not constitute cheating and is encouraged.

Turnitin.com Plagiarism Syllabus Statement: UCO subscribes to the Turnitin.com plagiarism prevention service. Students agree that by taking this course, all required assignments may be subject to submission for textual similarity review to Turnitin.com for the detection of plagiarism. All submitted assignments will be included as source documents in the Turnitin.com restricted access reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of such assignments.

Use of the Turnitin.com service is subject to the Terms and Conditions of Use posted on the Turnitin.com website. Turnitin.com is just one of various plagiarism prevention tools and methods which may be utilized by your faculty instructor during the terms of the semesters. In the UCO Student Handbook, there is a process for contesting any plagiarism allegations against you.

The Political Science Department of the University of Central Oklahoma is asking all students taking political science courses to read the following Academic Integrity Statement. Our purpose in doing so is to ensure that all our students are aware of what is improper academic behavior.

Academic Integrity Statement

As members of the academic community, students are expected to recognize and uphold standards of intellectual and academic integrity. The Political Science Department expects that its students will conduct themselves honestly. This means, above all, that students submit for credit work that is the product of their own efforts. Principles of academic integrity require that all dishonest work be rejected as a basis for academic credit, and that students refrain from any and all forms of dishonorable conduct in the course of their academic work.

The examples and definitions given below are intended to clarify the standards by which academic honesty and integrity is judged. The list is merely illustrative of some of the more common infractions. It is not intended to be exhaustive. Any question a student has about what constitutes inappropriate behavior should be directed towards their instructor. The rule of thumb to follow is: If in doubt, ASK!

Definitions and Examples

Plagiarism - Plagiarism is presenting another person’s work as one’s own. Plagiarism includes not only the exact use of another’s words, word for word, but also the paraphrasing or summarizing of the works of another person without acknowledgment, including the submitting of another student’s work as one’s own. The student is responsible for understanding the legitimate use of sources, the appropriate ways of acknowledging academic, scholarly, or creative indebtedness, and the consequences of violating this responsibility. In case of doubt, give a citation of the author you are using. Failure to indicate the extent and nature of one's reliance on other sources is plagiarism. A plagiarized paper will result in a failing grade on the work in question, and perhaps, for the entire course.

Cheating on Examinations - Cheating on examinations involves giving or receiving unauthorized help before, during, or after an examination. Examples of unauthorized help include the use of notes, texts, or “crib sheets” during an examination (unless receiving instructor approval), or sharing information with another student either during or after an examination.

Falsification - It is a violation of academic honesty to misrepresent material or to fabricate information in an academic exercise or assignment (e.g. false or misleading citation of sources, the falsification of the results of experiments or of computer data).

Multiple Submissions - It is a violation of academic honesty to submit substantial portions of the same work for credit more than once without the explicit consent of the instructor to whom the material is being submitted the second time.