PA 700

PA 700

Fall 2007

Style Sheet for Case Study

“Ready. Set. Showdown” by Shane Peterson

This assignment is intended to acquaint you with the case study method of teaching; something you will encounter in many of the courses you take as part of this program. In a case study you are given information about an actual situation. You must then identify the significant facts and issues, consider the people involved and what their interests are, reflect on the decisions to be made and courses of action that can or must be taken, and come up with recommendations as to how to proceed. We expect your first effort to analyze a case will be difficult. By the time you reach the capstone course (PA 800) you should have much more knowledge and greater experience and analytical ability to apply to the case. Thus, this assignment provides us with a baseline against which to judge students’ success in achieving the learning objectives for the program.

For this assignment, imagine that you have been asked by a new member of the California legislature (we’ll call him or her Senator X) to write a brief memo assessing the issues with respect to ReadyReturn, and providing recommendation(s) as to how Senator X should proceed. This Senator wants to play a pivotal role in resolving the controversy over ReadyReturn in a way that satisfies the most stakeholders. Your discussion will be based on this article about ReadyReturn that appeared recently in an online publication called Government Technology.

Your task is to write a memo to the legislator, not to exceed 2 pages*, doubled-spaced. Your memo should:

	Identify the most significant issues/problems presented by the case
	Identify the important stakeholders and their interests in the
	Discuss the possible courses of action to be taken
	Make a recommendation for how the Senator should proceed and why.

Your discussion should also include reference to the essay by Woodrow Wilson, “The Study of Administration,” that is assigned for the next class session. When you refer to it, you should do so using the APA in-text method of citation (see Hacker book or this website: http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/DocAPA.html). Make sure you begin with a brief introduction to the case and close with a brief summary of the main issues involved and your recommendation(s).

Your grade will be based on:

	How effectively you have analyzed the public administration problem by identifying key public administration issues in the case
	The clarity with which you present and develop a clear and concise line of analysis (effective opening and closing with well organized points throughout the paper).
	The extent to which your recommendation(s) are consistent with the analysis provided.
	Whether your recommendation(s) offer a feasible solution to the identified problem(s)
	The extent to which you effectively apply the Woodrow Wilson reading to the discussion.
	Whether you demonstrate good basic writing skills: grammar, spelling, sentence structure
	Whether you have appropriately cited your source(s).
	Whether you stayed inside the two-page limit.

* I know this space limitation can make it more difficult, but that is part of the exercise—to encourage you to learn how to write concisely.