Policy Research Shop Testimony: May 17, 2012

Professor Shaiko and PRS Students Present at Annual Vermont Town and City Managers Association Meeting

On Thursday, May 17, 2012, Professor Ronald G. Shaiko, Senior Fellow and Associate Director for Curricular and Research Programs at the Nelson A. Rockefeller Center, and three Policy Research Shop students—Christopher Whitehead ’12, Travis Blalock ’12, and David Lumbert ’12—traveled to the Top Notch Resort in Stowe, Vermont to make presentations before the Vermont Town and City Managers Association. The annual meeting of VTCMA brought together more than 50 town and city managers from across the State of Vermont.

Following the opening of the meeting and introductions, Professor Shaiko conducted an interactive session with the attendees entitled, “The Challenges of Leadership and Governance in Changing Times.” In the next session of the meeting, Rockefeller Center PRS students Whitehead, Blalock, and Lumbert were joined by two graduate students from the University of Vermont Masters in Public Administration Program to discuss the how the two programs interact with state and local governments in Vermont. Whitehead, Blalock, and Lumbert explained the Policy Research Shop model of teaching and learning, including both the curricular and co-curricular elements of the model, and described the PRS projects of which each of the students had participated. The students then responded to questions from the town and city managers regarding potential projects for the PRS.