Dr. Brett S. Sharp, Assistant Professor, has considerable professional and administrative experience in both state and local 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 is currently the Associate Director of the Oklahoma Policy Research Center at UCO conducting policy analysis and other research on state and local issues in Oklahoma. He is the immediate past president of the Oklahoma Chapter of the American Society for Public Administration.

Office Hours:  MWF 9:00-10:00 AM and MW 5:00-5:45 PM (and by appointment)

Office:  LAR 102-J

Email: bsharp@ucok.edu

Telephone:  (405) 974-5526

Fax: (405) 974-3823

Web Site:  http://www.libarts.ucok.edu/political/faculty/sharp/index.html 

Classroom:  LAR 124

This course introduces the structure and process of state and local government in the United States with an emphasis on Oklahoma. The focus will be on current issues facing sub-national governments and how they respond to various public policy challenges. The roles played by elected leaders, policy makers, administrators, interest groups, and citizens in the political process will also be explored. Through a series of real-life case studies, we will analyze how people actually operate within a political framework to impact public policy.

This course is designed for active student participation and includes several case studies, presentations of readings, and other in-class simulations. Classroom questions and discussion are strongly encouraged. Students will attend lectures which will orient them to basic concepts and information concerning state and local government. Students are responsible, through self-study and reading assignments, for learning relevant concepts and practices of state and local government. Each student will also present an article review and write an issue paper over state or local government issues. The student is responsible for retaining backup copies of all homework assignments. Students should be aware that some flexibility is retained in the syllabus to accommodate invited speakers and other learning opportunities. Students should regularly check the professor’s web site for any class announcements.

TEXTS

Bowman, Ann O’M., and Kearney, Richard C. (2002). State and Local Government (3^rd Ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. [Required]

Markwood, Christopher L. (Ed.). (2000). Oklahoma Government & Politics: An Introduction (2nd Ed). Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt Publishing. [Required]

Ehrenhalt, Alan. (Ed.). (2002). Governing: Issues and Applications from the Front Lines of Government. Washington, DC: CQ Press. [Required]

Scott, Gregory M. & Garrison, Stephen M. (2001). The Political Science Student Writer’s Manual (4th Ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall. [Recommended]

The University of Central Oklahoma complies with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Students with disabilities who need special accommodations should make their request by contacting the coordinator of Disability Support Services at 974-2549. The office is located in the Administration Building, Room 211. Students should also notify their instructor of special accommodation needs by the end of the first week of class.

90 -100 = A

80 - 89 = B

70 - 79 = C

60 - 69 = D

0 - 59 = F

Participation                          10%

Case Study/Article Review    10%

First Exam*                           20%

Second Exam*                      20%

Issue Paper*                         20%

Final Exam                            20%

* You may elect not to turn in an issue paper, and if so, the average of your first two exams will substitute for this score. Alternatively, you may turn in an issue paper, and your lowest exam score will be dropped. The average of your highest exam score and your issue paper would then substitute for the lowest exam score.

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. Class attendance may affect marginal grades and will be considered when assigning participation points.

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.

Each student will select an article from the supplementary textbook, Governing: Issues and Applications from the Front Lines of Government. The student will then prepare a 2-3 page analytical response to the contents. The student may (but is not required to) draw upon outside readings in preparing their analytical response. Each article review will be presented to the rest of the class according to the schedule as arranged with the instructor. Students should briefly summarize the facts, highlight the key issues, and present their analysis. These article reviews should also include 2-3 thought provoking questions to be posed to the rest of the class in order to stimulate class discussion. Students will be allowed ten to fifteen minutes for their presentation and subsequent class discussion. This assignment will be graded on quality of presentation, summary of relevant points, analysis, questions, and resulting class discussion. Discussion for related articles may be combined by the instructor.

Each student that elects this option will write a 6-8 page, double-spaced research paper for this course. You will choose as your topic some issue that directly relates to contemporary state and local government or politics. While you must cite sufficient references to make your paper convincing, this assignment requires a minimum of three references from outside sources. Students should follow an accepted style convention such as outlined in the recommended textbook by Scott and Garrison, The Political Science Student Writers Manual. The research paper is due at the beginning of class, Friday, December 6. Papers will be graded on topic selection, format, grammar, writing style, citation convention, content delivery, analysis, and research quality. Please refer to the discussion of plagiarism in the Academic Integrity Statement attached to the syllabus as well as pages 164-167 in The Political Science Student Writers Manual.

There will be three examinations during the semester. The first two exams will be comprised of multiple choice questions. The final exam will be comprehensive and may be comprised of essay, short answer, and/or multiple choice questions. 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, it is in your best interest not to depend upon the final exam to make up for previously poor grades.

Cheating = Failure (please refer to attached Academic Integrity Statement). 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. Consulting with the instructor about any assignment does not constitute cheating and is encouraged.

It is expected that a full-time college student will spend a minimum amount of time each week in class attendance and study out of class approaching a 40-hour week. A person employed on a full-time basis should not simultaneously expect to maintain a full-time academic schedule. At the undergraduate level, this means that for each hour in class, a student is expected to spend at least three (3) hours doing homework. For a three credit class, a student is expected to spend nine (9) hours a week doing homework.

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.