Friday, February 16, 2001

WILMINGTON – The University of North Carolina at Wilmington today announced the makeup of a new 25-member Political Science/Master of Public Administration Community Advisory Board. To be chaired by New Hanover County Manager Allen O’Neal, the board includes representation from cities, towns, and county governments in Southeastern North Carolina as well as leaders in environmental, regulatory and non-profit agencies.

This board was organized because the UNCW Department of Political Science is entering an exciting new era, according to Department Chair Dr. Milan J. Dluhy. “We anticipate the UNC Board of Governors to approve the new Master of Public Administration program to begin fall semester 2001. Our enrollments in Political Science are at an all time high, and we are moving into a new building – Lakeside Hall -- this summer,” he said. “We also are planning numerous new activities, including the ‘Great Decisions’ speakers program currently underway on Monday evenings and a Quality of Life Conference in the six-county region to be held in fall 2001.

“As we move into these new arenas, we need the advice of community and university leaders to ensure that our plans are serving the best interests of the Cape Fear region. We look forward to working with community advisory board to develop sound strategies in areas such as curriculum content, marketing, internships and program planning.”

The UNC Board of Governors granted UNC Wilmington the authorization to plan the Master of Public Administration program in January 2000. The MPA is the recognized professional managerial degree for all levels of government and is increasingly valued in the growing nonprofit sector as well.

Southeastern North Carolina is the only part of the state not serviced by an MPA program. According to Dr. Thomas J. Barth, MPA director, there is tremendous interest on the UNCW campus and in the region. Twenty-three students are pre-enrolled. The deadline for applications is April 15.

The proposed program will require completion of 42 credit hours (39 for experienced students who do not require an internship). The curriculum has been designed to provide a comprehensive education for individuals interested in management careers in government or nonprofit institutions. Students may choose a concentration in Coastal Town Management or Nonprofit Management.

The interdisciplinary focus of the MPA reflects the broad scope of the public and nonprofit sectors. Core courses in generic topics such as organization behavior, human resource management, budgeting/finance and policy analysis will be supplemented by specialty areas which tap campus and community expertise such as coastal/environmental management, parks and recreation, communication studies and human service management. Night and weekend courses will be offered as well as distance learning technology to meet the needs of working and full time students. Internships, both paid and unpaid, will be required in public, nonprofit, and private sector organizations.



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For more information, contact Dr. Barth at 910/962-3385 or e-mail bartht@uncwil.edu.

List of board members follows.

The University of North Carolina at Wilmington

POLITICAL SCIENCE/MPA COMMUNITY ADVISORY BOARD

February, 2001

Mr. Allen O’Neal (Chair)

New Hanover County Manager

Professor Elaine Asper

Graduate Program Administrator

Cameron School of Business

UNCW

Dr. William Atkinson

President and CEO

New Hanover Regional Medical Center

Mr. William Bailey

Bailey & Dalrymple, LLC

Washington, DC 20036

Mr. Martin Beach

Pender County Manager

Professor Robert Buerger

Coordinator, Environmental Studies Program, UNCW

Mr. Bill Caster

New Hanover County Board

Of Commissioners

Ms. Wanda Coston

New Hanover County Planning Department



Colonel James DeLony

Commander and District Engineer

U.S. Army Engineers

Wilmington District

Professor Walter DeVries

Director, Institute of Political Leadership

Mr. Dean Dimke

Executive Director

American Red Cross, Cape Fear Chapter

Mr.ThomasDonnellyJr.

Jefferson Government Relations

Washington, DC 20036

Mr. Robert Gerlach

President, VTA Group

Chair, Greater Wilmington Chamber of Commerce

Professor Jack Hall

Director, Environmental Studies Program

The University of North Carolina at Wilmington

Mr. Bill Hart

Executive Director

Cape Fear Tomorrow, Inc.

Mr. Dempsey Herring

Columbus County Administrator

Mr. Andrew Honeycutt

Manager, Town of Wrightsville Beach

Professor Patricia Kelley

Chair, Department of Earth Sciences, UNCW

Mr. Chris May

Executive Director

Cape Fear Council of Governments

Ms. Pamela O’Brien

Executive Director, YWCA

Ms. Linda Pearce

Executive Director

Elderhaus Inc.

Professor Nelson Reid

Chair, Department of Social Work, UNCW

Mr. Bobby Smith

Executive Director

Cape Fear United Way

Mr. Steven Stone

Assistant County Manager

Brunswick County

Mr. Erik Stromberg

Executive Director

North Carolina State Ports Authority

Mr. Bob Stroud

Wilmington District Manager

North Carolina Division of Coastal Management

John Taggart

Reserve Coordinator

North Carolina Coastal Reserve

Mr. William Whisnant

Deputy City Manager

City of Wilmington

Professor Cecil Willis

Chair, Department of Sociology

and Criminal Justice, UNCW