Policy Design, Analysis, and Evaluation Commons^™

Conflict Between Saudi Arabia And Iran: An Examination Of Critical Factors Inhibiting Their Positive Roles In The Middle East, Ghadah Alghunaim

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

Since 1979, Saudi-Iranian relations have been tense due to their position as superior powers in the Middle East. Both countries have different values and perspectives in regards to diplomatic relations with the West. As a consequence of the new developments in Iran's foreign policy and the newfound openness to the West adopted by President Rouhani, the topic has proven to be of research interest. The primary concern of this research was to explore the effect of the conflict between Saudi Arabia and Iran in the Middle East, and whether or not there is a possibility to overcome this conflict using …

Counterinsurgency Redux? Dutch Counterinsurgency In Uruzgan, Afghanistan 2006-2010, Andrew Majkut

Government and International Relations Honors Papers

This thesis examines the complex, interdisciplinary nature of counterinsurgency in the 21st century by assessing the whole-of-government, population-centric approach that the Dutch Armed Forces and Government took to combat the Taliban in Uruzagn, Afghanistan from 1 August 2006 to 1 August 2010. The Dutch approach resulted in increased security, as well as increased political and economic capacity in the three districts of Uruzgan where they focused their efforts. By the end of Task Force Uruzgan, the Government of Afghanistan had increased its majority control from 0 percent of the population to approximately 60 percent, and the Afghan National Security Forces …

Do Municipal Stat Programs Improve Services And Reallocate Resources? Evidence From Louiestat, Jamie Giles

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Performance metrics and municipal stat programs are becoming increasingly popular to measure performance of city departments in order to improve services and save taxpayers’ dollars. The intent of this research is to give decision makers a better understanding to what extent municipal stat programs make an impact on the departments being measured, using an analysis of Metro Louisville’s LouieStat as evidence. Understanding the effect of PerfomanceStat tools will provide insight for the Louisville Administration and for other cities considering using a similar tool.

The literature finds performance management tools to be more widely used as a management tool to influence …

The Effect Of Direct Payments To Rice Farming Households In Korea, Jaehyung Kim

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

1) Background

Rice farming is a very important agricultural policy issue for the Korean government not only because rice is a staple food for the Korean population but because rice production is also an important source of income for those involved in rice farming. The importance of rice production to the agricultural sector of Korea is indicated by the fact that 49% of Korea’s agricultural land is devoted to rice production. Therefore, Korean agricultural policy has focused on rice production issues as well as the income of farmers involved in rice production.

To support rice farming income, the Korean government …

Spending For Affordable Housing: How Lexington-Fayette Urban County, Ky Compares To Similar Cities In The U.S., Chenglin Zhao

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Objectives: The shortage of affordable housing in Lexington-Fayette urban county has become an important policy issue. The analysis in this study is designed to find out does Lexington-Fayette Urban County do better or worse in financing affordable housing for low-income residents.

Method: By comparing Lexington-Fayette Urban County with 11 similar cities in U.S., there may reveal options for the Lexington-Fayette Urban County government to improve housing supply financing assistance services, find new funding sources for affordable housing and ensure more low-income residents can find affordable housing.

Key finding: Nonprofit housing operations play meaningful roles in addressing the supply of affordable …

An Analysis Of The Impact Of Housing Policies On Housing Prices In South Korea, Daeil Kwon

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The South Korean government has been intervening in the housing market for a long time to either activate or stabilize housing prices. However, there is a controversy about the effect of housing policy in South Korea. I analyzed the effect of housing policies as well as other factor s (interest rate, cost of renting, inflation, stock price, unemployment rate, exchange rate) on housing prices nationally as well as in northern Seoul and in southern Seoul, from January 2000 to January 2015 (181 months of data).

According to the results of my regression analysis to test the effect of housing policies, …

Cost Analysis Of A Pharmacy Intern Program At A Tertiary Academic Medical Center, Bridgette Kanz

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

In the modern world of healthcare, the role of the pharmacy intern is growing as hospitals look to decrease cost and increase care. The University of Kentucky Pharmacy Intern Program (UKPIP) employs pharmacy interns as pharmacist extenders to help complete the clinical task of medication reconciliation (med recs). The purpose of this study was to quantify the value of completing this task and determine whether it is cost effective to have interns or pharmacists in this role.

The Institutional Review Board approved this study. UK’s electronic medical record database identified admission med recs completed by pharmacy interns and pharmacists in …

Assessment Of The Quality Of Public Data Reporting By Nonprofit Social Service Agencies Receiving Funding From The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government In Fy 2013, Yuanyuan Song

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

In 2012 and 2013, Lexington Fayette Urban County Government (LFUCG) Department of Social Service requested a “Social Service Needs Assessment Project” in Fayette County, Kentucky. In Aug, 31, 2012, Social Service Department established the “Needs Assessment Budget”. During Mar-Oct, 2013, two teams from The University of Kentucky College of Social Work (COSW) and the Martin School of Public Policy and Public Administration worked together to accomplish this project.

One of the tasks of this project is to assess the quality of data reported by the social service partner agencies of Lexington. “Partner organization” is the name government officials give to …

Nonprofit Organizations & Social Media Fundraising: An Analysis Of The Goodgiving Guide Challenge, Laura Whitaker

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

In today’s age of social media and interconnectedness, nonprofit organizations have the ability to be creative in their fundraising efforts. One method of online fundraising is a social media campaign, such as the GoodGiving Guide Challenge, an eight-week online charitable giving campaign for nonprofit organizations across Central Kentucky.

A review of related literature shows that previous studies have touched on the growing trend of social media as a nonprofit marketing tool, the role of internet in the nonprofit sector in general, the return on investment in nonprofit internet use, and the importance of accountability and trust in terms of online …

Sex, Slaves, And Saviors: Domestic And Global Agendas In U.S. Anti-Trafficking Policy, Chelsea L. Thompson

Scripps Senior Theses

In this thesis, I problematize the United States’ response to the global phenomenon characterized as human trafficking. The framing of trafficking as policy issue takes place in the context of politicized claims about the nature and prevalence of trafficking, its relation to the sex industry, and the kind of response that is required. U.S. anti-trafficking policy was built and shaped in the context of fears about immigration, global labor, and the sex industry. As a result, trafficking has been used to justify oppressive domestic reactions such as border crackdown, scrutiny of immigrant and sex worker communities, and victim “protection” that …

Ab 32 And Sb 375: Investigating Land Use And Transportation Policy On A Regional And Local Scale, Caroline Vurlumis

Scripps Senior Theses

The California Global Warming Solutions Act, also known as Assembly Bill 32 (AB 32), was passed in 2006 to reduce California emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. Senate Bill 375 (SB 375) was passed in 2008 to support AB 32's emission goals. SB 375 aims to reduce emissions from transportation and land use by assigning regional per capita emission targets for 2020 and 2035. Through a series of four case studies of San Diego, San Francisco, Fresno, and Berkeley, this thesis investigates the impacts of SB 375. Each region is required to combine housing and regional transit plans in the …

Whites And The Active Representation Of Racial Minority Interests, Maykao Y. Hang

School of Business Student Theses and Dissertations

This study explored personal and organizational factors that contribute to White public administrators actively representing the interests of racial minority minorities. Data collection comprised of 15 semi-structured interviews. The average age was 54, and the length of service was 3-33 years. Subjects were asked about their personal background, what it means to be White, and work experiences in local county government.

Personal factors found were racial consciousness, major life events, and significant relationships with people of color. Organizational factors included a diverse and inclusive work environment, bureaucracy, legal and compliance issues, and supervisor support. Findings included that Whites did not …

Suburban Sustainability: Favorable, Forgotten, Or Fantasy?, Tessia Melvin, Tessia G. Melvin

School of Business Student Theses and Dissertations

In the decades after World War II, the United States became a prosperous nation and world superpower. Reinventing itself through the development of suburbs, many communities were created by suburbs. Years later, criticized for suburban sprawl and aging communities, suburban communities today are faced with the dilemma of what changes to make in order to create sustainable suburban communities.

Most of the literature on sustainability and its success comes from the private sector. Much available literature provides sustainable indicators and concepts on corporate sustainability. As a result, many public administrators are faced with a reality that changes need to occur …

Myscouting: An Assessment Of User Satisfaction And Suggestions For Improvement, Donald H. Combs Iii

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The Boy Scouts of America was established as a non-profit organization in 1910 and now has over three million active volunteers in the United States. Since the organization was founded in America, the program has grown not only in membership, but also in complexity with many new awards, training requirements, and programs. Originally the organization tracked this information via paper submission. After the development of the disk operation system (DOS), the organization started tracking and storing information in this data system. Yet, while today the DOS-based databases are outdated, the Boy Scouts of America still continues to use this technology …

The Modern Streetcar In The United States: Do Cities Have The Information Needed To Make Informed Choices?, Elle Hull

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Streetcars have made a comeback in cities in North American in the last several decades; there are now over 45 cities operating, building, or planning streetcars. The majority of these streetcars are viewed primarily as catalysts for economic development, rather than as a means of public transportation. However, the streetcar’s claim of promoting development is backed by surprisingly little evidence.

Although carrying out an analysis of the impact of streetcars on economic development is beyond the scope of this paper due to problems with data availability, methods of performing such an analysis are discussed. This includes a list of cities …

Postsecondary Instruction: Changes In The Academic Workforce And State Appropriations For Community Colleges, R. Ryan Kendrick

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Over the last 30 years continued decline in state appropriations for public institutions has been accompanied by an increase in the use of part-time instruction. Community colleges have been particularly susceptible to both of these problems. Two-year institutions have less freedom than their larger counterparts to raise tuition rates and part time instructors constitute a larger percentage of their workforce. Less revenue has resulted in fewer resources to devote to instruction and student support. Part-time time instruction, on the whole, results in lower student retention and graduation rates.

This analysis intended to establish a connection between cuts to state appropriations …

Measuring Academic Achievement Of University Of Kentucky Student Athletes: Helping The Center For Academic And Tutorial Services Better Allocate Resources, Chatham Penrod

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The NCAA requires its member institutions and student athletes to maintain certain academic requirements to remain eligible for competition. To ensure academic success, many institutions establish academic centers for their student athletes. The University of Kentucky was the first institution to develop a facility of this type. The Center for Academic and Tutorial Services (CATS) provides academic enhancement for its student athletes.

After a brief overview on current NCAA academic eligibility requirements, this paper looks at the organization of CATS and at the current literature on student athlete academic achievement. Then a few analyses were conducted on the academic achievement …

Determining Undergraduate Factors That Predict Academic Success In Pharmacy School, Stephen Polley

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Admission into pharmacy school is a very competitive process, and as a result multiple authors have looked at a variety of factors in an effort to create a systematic process that admissions committees can use to identify candidates who are likely to succeed in the rigorous pharmacy curriculum. One of the issues with this approach is that these analyses tend to be very institution-specific. In this paper I hope to identify a mechanism that the University of Kentucky (UK) College of Pharmacy admissions committee can use to efficiently and thoroughly evaluate candidates using scientifically validated factors.

This study uses a …

Teacher Compensation And Student Outcomes: A District Examination In Kentucky, Logan Rupard

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Teacher effectiveness is an often examined topic in our educational policy arena today, especially when it comes to its effects on student outcomes. Teachers are often considered one of the most important factors in affecting student outcomes. Because the quality of teachers attracted to the teaching profession is presumed to be influenced by their compensation, we are interested in measuring how teacher compensation and student outcomes are related. This study will examine not only current compensation, but include pension compensation as well. By combining both current salaries and pension payments as a unit for total compensation, this paper will examine …

Sustainability Policy’S Inherent Dilemmas – Exemplified Via Critical Examination Of The Las Vegas Metropolitan Sustainability Campaign, Kathryn A. Zimmerman

All Master's Theses

In response to a dual problem of critical water scarcity and rapid population growth, leaders of metropolitan Las Vegas implemented a region-wide, internationally marketed sustainability campaign. Preliminary studies found that, while sustainability policy attains its rhetorical goals, solutions initiated not only perpetuate but also purposefully expand the original dual problem to justify continuous water resource acquisitions. To examine this sustainability conundrum constructed by leadership—problem-perpetuation rather than problem-resolution—a critical examination in resource management asked two basic questions: what is being sustained and by what means? Via this inquiry, specific processes by which leaders perpetuate problems can be identified; and, so-informed, new …