Associations and Societies

Associations and societies provide a wealth of information relevant to a discipline. Professional academic groups hold conferences, publish conference proceedings and keep members informed about upcoming activities. This kind of information helps students identify individual scholars in a field and their research interests. Papers delivered at professional conferences are often posted on these web sites. They contain valuable research and may never appear in print.

American Society for Public Administration (ASPA)
Professional society for public managers, public officials, educators, research workers, and others in related fields interested in public managment as a career or profession. Website includes listings of conferences, meetings and jobs. Publishes Public Administration Review.

Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management (APPAM)
APPAM encourages excellence in research, teaching, and practice in the field of public policy analysis and managment. This includes decisionmaking and policymaking theory, quantitative and other methods.

Conference of Minority Public Administrators
COMPA is a section within ASPA. Its web site provides information about the section's activities, table of contents for its publication, the Journal of Public Management and Social Policy, and links to other related sites.

International City/County Management Association (ICMA)
Founded in 1914, ICMA is the professional and educational association for administrators serving cities, counties, other local governments, and regional entities around the world. ICMA's mission is to strengthen the quality of local government through professional management.

National Academy of Public Administration
Independent, non-partisan organization chartered by Congress to assist federal, state, and local governments in improving their effectiveness, efficiency, and accountability.

Policy Studies Organization
Promotes the application of political and social science to important policy problems. Activities are designed to bring academicians and practioners together on policy problems across disciplinary lines. Publishes Review of Policy Research and Policy Studies Journal.