A new, in-demand graduate program—master of public administration (M.P.A.) in public and nonprofit management—is now accepting students for fall 2011. The new program, which will be administered by the Political Science Department, will provide students with the skills necessary to be highly effective managers in the public and not-for-profit sectors.

“This program builds on our graduate certificate in public administration as well as the multidisciplinary master’s program we offered,” said Angelo Conorozzo, who has been coordinating the M.S. in multidisciplinary studies that focused on human services administration. “The M.P.A. is a widely recognized degree for people working in the government and not-for-profit sectors.”

The new program, which is accepting students for the fall, will offer two tracks: one in public administration and a second in nonprofit administration. Students in both tracks are required to take five core courses—public administration and policy, finance, administrative practices in public and nonprofit sectors, research methods in public administration, and American government and politics. Students also are required to choose a relevant skills course to attain proficiency in hands-on computer skills, GIS, problem-solving, or financial analysis—whichever is most appropriate.

With the guidance of a faculty adviser, each student will select four additional courses appropriate for his or her area of study. Both tracks also require a 6-credit-hour project or practicum. To attain the degree, students will complete 36 credit hours.

“We expect that most of our students will be professionals working in the field,” said Conorozzo. With that in mind, courses will be offered in three formats: evening classes; online courses; and hybrid courses that combine class meetings with on-line coursework. About 75 students are expected to enroll in the program in the 2011-2012 academic year.

Demand already exists for the program. “We expect that many of our current students in the graduate certificate program for public management will want to earn a master’s degree,” said Conorozzo. “People working for the City of Buffalo and the Erie County Department of Social Services are already enrolled here, and many are already on a waiting list for this M.P.A.”

Conorozzo said that the program is especially designed for managers who work outside the for-profit sector. “In the public and not-for-profit sectors,” said Conorozzo, “administrators need to know how to manage public money and resources to maximize efficiency while providing necessary services.”

Buffalo State is also beginning the third year of a four-year, $200,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) to manage a program in transatlantic public administration. The program, called the European Union-United States Atlantis Program, allows for faculty and student exchanges among the participating colleges.

“We are building transatlantic and Canadian content into our M.P.A.,” said Laurie Buonanno, chair and professor of political science. “We want to ensure that public servants in Western New York are fully equipped to take advantages of opportunities to strengthen economic development with their counterparts in Europe and Canada.”