About
The Trachtenberg School in GW's Columbian College of Arts and Sciences (CCAS) is a focal point for public affairs education, research, and public service at the George Washington University.
Building on a rich tradition of education for public service and on its location in the nation's capital, just a few blocks west of the White House, the George Washington University offers a superior education for students wishing to pursue public affairs-oriented academic programs.
If you want to be in the heart of Washington, D.C. while you gain knowledge and skills to tackle big challenges all around the world, be part of the Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration on the George Washington University's Foggy Bottom campus.
The Trachtenberg School degree programs include:
- The Master of Public Administration (MPA), including an MPA/JD Program
- The Master of Public Policy (MPP), including an MPP/JD Program and an MPP/PhD in Political Science Program
- The Master of Arts in Environmental Resource Policy
- The PhD in Public Policy and Administration
- The Certificate in Nonprofit Management
- The Certificate in Budget and Public Finance (courses can be completed in person or online)
- The Certificate in Environmental Resource Policy
The Trachtenberg School maintains close ties with the George Washington Institute of Public Policy (GWIPP), a university wide research institute whose faculty and graduate students engage in research on important policy issues and concerns.
The George Washington University Regulatory Studies Center, in the Trachtenberg School, raises awareness of regulations’ effects and improves regulatory policy through research, education, and outreach.
The Trachtenberg School is closely affiliated with other research and public service institutes including:
- The Center for Excellence in Municipal Management
- The Center for Washington Area Studies
In addition, The Trachtenberg School is affiliated and closely collaborates with, through joint staffing and administration, several other MA in Public Policy programs within the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, including:
The Trachtenberg School is a member of the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management and NASPAA, the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs and Administration.
Message from Kathy Newcomer as 2017 President of the American Evaluation Association
Message from Kathy Newcomer, AEA President for 2017
- Be persistent and consistent in incorporating an equity lens when designing and evaluating all programs and policies. Relatedly, we need to be inclusive and incorporate the values of beneficiaries when defining (and refining) what program success looks like. I hope that many will benefit from the excellent video produced to help us learn from our Race and Class Dialogues. (Thank you to the Kellogg Foundation for your support of this project!)
- Draw from our values and strengths to bring evaluative thinking into policy and program design and implementation, as well as evaluation. Embrace new ideas, “big data,” but build upon, and not replace, our ethical principles, knowledge and skills.
- Carefully set criteria as to what constitutes sufficient evidence, and work with others to co-create our expectations of valid, reliable and relevant evidence in a multicultural setting.
- Intentionally and strategically create learning agendas, both personally and organizationally, and reward learning from measurement and evaluation of all sorts.
- Hold ourselves accountable to the people affected by the programs and policies we evaluate.