Professional Skills

One of the most exciting aspects of the M.P.A. program is that it exposes you to an assortment of new tools for designing, implementing, and evaluating programs and policies. The skill sets that one develops in the program can be applied to a myriad of professional endeavors. These analytical tools cover a wide range of disciplines, including: budgeting, microeconomics, cost-benefit analysis, statistics, and research design.

 

Public Works Budget Proposal

 

Although agencies in the public sector do not typically pursue a profit, there is an added degree of accountability associated with spending tax revenues. Incremental change is the watchword, but agencies often have to justify every expenditure. Despite my familiarlity with MS Excel, I had never used some of its functions until my budgeting course. When I was designing a budget proposal for a hypothetical Public Works agency, MS Excel spreadsheets provided most of the supporting documentation. The names have been changed to protect the innocent.

 

 

 

 

Traffic Congestion

 

Metropolitan areas that are experiencing growth will, at some point, have to address excessive commute times and other externalities. With global warming now a reality, there are also environmental factors to consider when attempting to balance growth and traffic-easing solutions.

 

My team performed an analysis of alternatives to reduce congestion in downtown San Francisco, using the rational-comprehensive framework. Cost-benefit analysis was conducted on three alternatives against a set of criteria, using net present value calculations.

 

 

Registered Sex Offenders and Property Values

When Proposition 83 was overwhelmingly approved by the voters of California in November 2006, the intent was to reduce the incidence of sexual assaults by restricting where registered sex offenders (RSO's) could live. Before it was struck down as unconstitutional, Prop 83 prohibited RSO's from living within 2,000 feet of a public school or park- which essentially would have meant the entire city of San Francisco.

 

I wanted to know what effect, if any, RSO's have on property values in an inelastic housing market, such as San Francisco's. The recent subprime mortgage crisis has affected the housing market since then, and this has complicated my data collection. Consequently, this research is currently in progress. Please check back after December 2007 for my findings.