Welcome to the APPAM Leadership Blog Series! Each month you will hear from our Executive Director, President or President-Elect, providing APPAM membership a behind-the-scenes look at how APPAM operates and how you can be more involved. Our authors will introduce new initiatives, discuss current policy topics and share resources they value.
Want to have a conversation? Follow @APPAM_DC and #APPAMLeaders on twitter!
by David Johnson, APPAM President
Welcome to the new Policy Council members, the leadership team, and all the new and continuing APPAM members. APPAM thrives on the contributions and commitment of tremendous volunteers – you, as members.
As the President of APPAM, I want to encourage you to become more involved. Our work as the APPAM leadership begins with the three pillars of the strategic plan – to promote public policy analysis and management, increase policy relevance, and expand diversity. This work is accomplished by the 28 policy council members, our 10 committees and our 3400 APPAM members.
Forty years ago this summer, a group met at Hilton Head to discuss the possibility of an organization that focused on public policy analysis and management. In fact, our first president, Joel Fleishman, said it was at this meeting that the concept of APPAM was born, with a focus “… on the exchange of ideas and research.” And to this day, we still focus on that exchange of ideas.
Some of our key initiatives are to expand student involvement, consider a second journal, increase interaction among academics, government researchers, and policy makers, provide guidance on improving data for evidence, and expand our APPAM tent. There are so many APPAM activities beyond the fall conference. I encourage you to check them out.
To achieve the goals of the strategic plan, we have committees on professional development, policy relevance and diversity, along with communications, nominations, publications, meetings/conferences, dissertation review, membership, finance. We also have our student and institutional representative committees, and of course, our program committee currently planning the 2018 Fall Research Conference.
Let your ideas be heard. Reach out to a committee member and make that suggestion. Contact me, Matt, or any policy council member to become more involved – or share an idea. Follow us on twitter, @APPAM_DC, check out the website, read the newsletters, submit to our conferences, read JPAM, or talk to Tara Sheehan or any of our terrific staff.
And welcome – to the exchange of ideas.
.png)
David Johnson, APPAM President