Fall 2021 - 60880 - PA 383C - Policy Development

Policy Dev: Latino Policy Dev

COURSE DESCRIPTION: 

This course provides a multi-faceted understanding of policy development with a particular lens on Latino relevant policy.  Participants will learn about the process, actors, and contexts that shape how public policies are developed.  The course will provide a survey of policy development at the federal, state, and local levels.  The role of non-governmental and/or non-institutional actors will be integrated into the larger analysis of how policy is developed.  Finally, policy development processes will be grounded in the larger political realities of our current times. 

The purpose of this course is to equip participants with a set of policy tools that can be employed in a variety of settings. The course materials will provide a strong base of knowledge for thinking through policy development at different levels of government and across levels of government. These tools can then tangibly be used in positions such as a legislative director for a member of Congress, committee clerk for a State Affairs’ Committee, chief of staff for a city council member, or director of a non-profit advocacy organization.

The substantive policy areas the course will work with will be those that disproportionately affect the Latino population (e.g. Latinos and obesity rates).  Given the size and dispersion of the Latino population, what can be considered Latino policy is relatively broad and ultimately depends on the policy arena.  Latinos are now the largest minority group in the United States and in Texas are almost the same size as the non-Hispanic White population.  An understanding of American politics and policy is incomplete without an appreciation of policies that are related to this demographic.  This seminar will provide you with a nuanced knowledge of the factors that shape Latino relevant policies within an increasingly diverse demographic and cultural landscape.

Instruction Mode
Face-to-face