For the Final Project, you will select a government organization (federal, state, or local) or a nonprofit organization to concentrate on as you explore the various topics of the course. The organization may be one you are working for or are familiar with. As you progress through the readings and assignments in the course, think about how these topics are related to the organization you selected. The Learning Resources, the Discussions, and the Application Assignments throughout the course will guide your thinking as you complete the Final Project.

Your Final Project must demonstrate both breadth and depth of knowledge and critical thinking appropriate to graduate-level scholarship. It must follow the APA Publication Manual (6th edition) guidelines and be free of typographical, spelling, and grammatical errors. The project should be 15–18 pages in length (double-spaced), not including the title page, the abstract, and references. Organization Context: For this section, you will integrate the history of the organization you selected and describe the impact of the U.S. Constitution on public administration. You can find this information in the articles on the Federalist Papers referenced in a number of the weeks of the course. Legal Foundation: For this section, you should move beyond the Constitution and consider the legal basis for your organization. This might include administrative laws that regulate the organization, or it might include laws related to the establishment of the organization (if it is a government one). Connection to Public Service: For this section, you should consider how the organizational culture embodies a public service ethos. Ethical Issues or Dilemmas: For this section, you will describe a past or current ethical issue or dilemma the organization faced, or a potential dilemma it needed to manage. Describe how this ethical issue might have been addressed to avoid an ethical breach. Management and Leadership: For this section, consider the formal and informal leadership structures of the organization. Power and Civic Engagement: For this section, you will analyze the sources of power within the organization and how the organization engages the public. Accountability: For this section, you should describe how the organization maintains responsibility to its stakeholders or constituents. Intergovernmental Relations: For this section, you should explain how your organization coordinates efforts with other public or private entities, and the challenges that are faced in intergovernmental relations. Public Financial Management and Budgeting: For this section, you will analyze how financial management and budgeting occur in your organization and what impact budget objectives have on that organization’s public service mission. Challenges, Opportunities, and Trends: For this section, consider how challenges, opportunities, and trends may impact your organization internally). Also consider how your organization might impact social hange (externally).