Spring 2027 PA388K/PA325
Registrar catalog name (30 characters including spaces):
Roles/Philanthropy PubAffairs
Title on LBJ Website: Philanthropy’s Roles in Public Affairs
Time: 9-noon Thursday
Instructor: Dr. Becky Lentz
Course Description
[This course qualifies for the Graduate Portfolio Program in Nonprofit Studies]
Philanthropic Studies is a vibrant field of interdisciplinary and international scholarship, teaching, and professional practice. Yet, even though “philanthropy is everywhere”, its influence in social and policy change seems mysterious to many people. The goal of this course is to correct that perception.
The seminar uses mini lectures with concept maps, small investigative assignments, films, academic and non-academic readings, student projects, as well as robust class discussions from the perspective of program officers mobilizing their “portfolio thinking”. Their strategic investments in programs, projects, partnerships, and collaborations influence the trajectory of a wide variety of public affairs debates about democracy, climate change, education, government’s role in society, public health, and many others.
The course begins with a foundational overview of the theory and history of philanthropy in democratic societies. It then reviews the institutional and regulatory structure of philanthropy in the U.S. The course then turns to selected case studies that offer examples of portfolio thinking. The course ends with presentation of students’ inquiry-based projects.