21 courses with the subject GVPA, each shown exactly as we captured it from the college's catalog, with every element we hold. Where the wording looks broken, that is our reading of the catalog, not the college's text.
GVPA 100Making Policy Real: Social Problems and Policy Solutions3
Semester course; 3 lecture hours. 3 credits. This course is designed to introduce students to public affairs, expose them to the intersections among Wilder School disciplines through current issues and provide them with placement and career opportunities available through the school. The course explores current social problems, crises, challenges and policy solutions and will expand the students’ knowledge and scope of the process and impact of public decision-making. The course will use social problems as a key framework to discuss public policy, civic engagement, policy analysis and the influence of politics and the media on public affairs.
GVPA 200Race and Racism in U.S. Government and Public Affairs3
Semester course; 3 lecture hours (delivered online). 3 credits. Interrogates four key areas of inquiry: origins, ideology, maintenance and resistance to race and racism in the U.S., and applies an intersectional lens to examine how race interlocks with other systems of power. The course will draw from government and public affairs, public policy, criminal justice, homeland security and emergency management, urban and regional studies and planning, and applied social sciences to explore these issues and to help students understand how racism operates in the U.S.
GVPA 391Special Topics in Government and Public Affairs1-3
Semester course; 1-3 lecture hours. 1-3 credits. A maximum 6 credits in all special topics courses offered in the Wilder School may be applied to any of the school’s majors. Intended for sophomores and juniors. An intensive focus on a selected field of interest relevant to all majors in the school. See the Schedule of Classes for specific topics to be offered each semester.
Semester course; 3 lecture hours. 3 credits. Open only to students in the Virginia Capital Semester program. Designed as an integral part of the program, this course provides an examination of state policy issues and state legislative processes using the current Virginia General Assembly session as illustration.
GVPA 491Advanced Special Topics in Government and Public Affairs1-3
Semester course; 1-3 lecture hours. 1-3 credits. A maximum 6 credits in all special topics courses offered in the Wilder School may be applied to any of the school’s majors. Intended for advanced students and seniors. An intensive focus on a selected field of interest relevant to all majors in the school. See the Schedule of Classes for specific topics to be offered each semester.
GVPA 493Government and Public Affairs Internship1-6
Semester course; variable hours. 1-6 credits. (50 hours per credit.) May be repeated for a maximum of 6 credits. Permission of internship coordinator required. Designed to provide the student with an opportunity to relate theory to practice through observation and actual experience within the field of government and public affairs.
Semester course; 3 internship hours. 3 credits. Corequisite: GVPA 423. Enrollment restricted to students in the Virginia Capital Semester program. Designed to provide students with an opportunity to relate theory to practice through participation in activities related to the annual session of the Virginia General Assembly. Graded as Pass/Fail.
Semester course; 3 lecture hours. 3 credits. Students enrolling in this course must meet the eligibility requirements of the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program. Designed to provide advanced research opportunities to undergraduate students. Topics chosen in consultation with the UROP coordinator. Students may take a total of six GVPA 495 credits; only three of those credits may be applied to the major.
Semester course; 3 lecture hours. 3 credits. Capstone seminar course focusing on a broad topic in one of several disciplines of interest to Wilder School Scholars. Topics, structure and content determined each semester.
GVPA 591Special Topics in Government and Public Affairs3
Semester course; 3 lecture hours. 3 credits. An intensive focus on a specialized subject area relevant to graduate programs in the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs. See the Schedule of Classes for specific topics to be offered each semester. Also open to graduate students in programs outside of the Wilder School with permission of the instructor.
GVPA 601Introduction to Public Service and Administration3
Semester course; 3 lecture hours (delivered online, face-to-face or hybrid). 3 credits. Dynamics of governmental administration including administrative principles, decision-making, communication, leadership, organizational models, and the social, economic, legal and political milieu of administration. Crosslisted as: PADM 601.
GVPA 623Research Methods for Government and Public Affairs3
Semester course; 3 lecture hours (delivered online, face-to-face or hybrid). 3 credits. Introduction to the scope and methods of applied research for the public sector. Focuses on problem structuring through logical methods, exploring problems through observation and other methods of data collection, analyzing and summarizing findings using both qualitative and quantitative methods. Crosslisted as: URSP 623/PADM 623/CRJS 623.
Semester course; 3 lecture hours (delivered online, face-to-face or hybrid). 3 credits. The examination of various methods for identifying and structuring public policy problems and issues, formulating and analyzing alternative responses, recommending policy actions for decision-making, and designing and evaluating implementation plans and the means to monitor and evaluate the resulting policy outcomes. Crosslisted as: PADM 625.
Semester course; 3 lecture hours. 3 credits. Examines major traditions in the theory of planning in the context of actual planning processes and outcomes. Explores in depth the political, economic, and institutional constraints to effective planning and plan implementation. Discusses the planners' ethical dilemmas. Crosslisted as: URSP 632.
Semester course; 3 lecture hours. 3 credits. Teaches students to think structurally about gender and violence. Familiarizes students with social science and feminist scholarship and explanatory theories related to preventing and responding to gender violence. Students will learn about the experiences of and responses to sexual and domestic violence in specific social contexts, with a focus on less visible and underserved populations. Guest lectures provided by community experts in these areas. Also examines social policy and research implications of various approaches.
Semester course; 3 lecture hours. 3 credits. Examines public policy related to rivers and watersheds. Uses the James River for exploring and illustrating generic river policy issues. Crosslisted as: ENVS 640.
Semester course; 3 lecture hours (delivered online, face-to-face or hybrid). 3 credits. Designed to provide an overview of the concept of social equity and its relationship to public policy, this course will introduce students to an array of public policy areas along the core dimensions of race, ethnicity, gender and class. More specifically, this interdisciplinary survey course is designed to introduce graduate students to the concept of social equity and its relationship to public policy from theoretical and applied perspectives. The primary social equity focus of the course is racial inequities in the United States. Crosslisted as: PADM 672.
Semester course; 2 or 3 lecture hours. 2 or 3 credits. A philosophical investigation into the problems of making ethical decisions, focusing on issues likely to confront the public administrator. Examples of such issues are equity in social services delivery, affirmative action, loyalty to the bureaucracy vs. "whistle blowing," and conflicts of interest between personal and public interest. Crosslisted as: PADM 683/PHIL 683.
Semester course; 3 lecture hours. 3 credits. An intensive focus on a specialized subject area relevant to graduate programs in the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs. Also open to graduate students in programs outside of the Wilder School, with permission of the instructor. See the Schedule of Classes for specific topics to be offered each semester.
Semester course; 1-9 hours. 1-9 credits. Permission of instructor required. A graduate-level internship that allows students to explore professional opportunities that relate to one or more of the graduate programs in the Wilder School. See graduate coordinator for specific hour requirements.
Semester course; 1-3 seminar hours (delivered face-to-face or hybrid). 1-3 credits. May be repeated for a maximum of six credits. Enrollment is restricted to students in the Wilder Graduate Scholars Fellowship program and by permission of the instructor. While closely coordinated with the fellowship experience, the seminar is a distinct academic component and grades earned in the course are independent of fellowship performance. The seminar equips students with the knowledge, skills and professional competencies essential for effective public service leadership. By integrating academic learning with hands-on experiences in government and public affairs, the course fosters a deeper understanding of public service while emphasizing service-learning principles, professional development and ethical leadership.
