Master of Public Service and Administration (MPSA) Capstones

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http://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/94972

During their second year, MPSA students participate in two semesters of capstone research courses. These courses allow students to tackle a problem or project in the real world, often working in conjunction with a government agency or nonprofit organization. Designed to test the knowledge and abilities students have developed through their previous classes and experiences, capstones necessitate strong teamwork, careful research, writing ability, and often a large amount of ingenuity in identifying ways to approach an issue or find a solution.

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Now showing 1 - 20 of 89

Preparing for Threats in Harris County: Utilizing a Community Approach
(2020) Weaver, Alexis; Delgado, Briana; Mohr, Cameron; Aranda, Gabriel; Ott, Katherine; Patterson, Keefer; Mata, Madison; Migaud, Michael; Elahi, Towheed; Smith, Sonny; Harris County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management
From Flashlight to Searchlight: A Sustainable Information Program for Sex Trafficking Victims in Texas
(2020) Bartlett, Caroline; Boylan, Amelia; Cole, Leslie; Counsil, Blane; Hall, Allison; McGrath, Lauren; Morrison, Christina; Noonan, Norma; Tepe, Audrey; Thielbar, Savanna; McIntyre, David; Human Trafficking and Transnational/Organized Crime Section within the Office of the Attorney General of Texas
Commemorations in Congress: the Use of Commemorative Legislation toHonor Individuals, Groups, and Events
(2020) Baldwin, James; Hopper, Ellie; Hughey, Lizzie; Jones, Kassie; Ramos, Tony; Kerr, Deborah L.; Client
Planning for Resilience and Reducing Risk: Lessons for Mexico City
(2020) Alexander-Hawk, Mason; Davis, Rachell; Doucette, Patrick; Garcia, Abigail; Hill-Jackson, April; Khunjua, Aleksandre; Koeniger, Erika; Pineiro, Christian; Sanchez, Joey; Winarski, Kimberly; Hilderbrand, Mary; Client
Sustainable Funding for Conservation in Texas
(2020) Alvi, Taimoor Hussain; Haffey, Colton; Huddleston, Mary; Parks, Emily; Prieto, Bill; Reed, Austin; Sadiq, Hamza; Smith, Carolyn; Vatthauer, Matthew; Zahid, Maheen; Graham, Cole Blease; Client
City of Bryan Strategic Task and Technological Analysis
(2020) Ahmadi, Mohammad; Alexander, Emma; Cox, Kyle; Dingas, Faith; Jones, Jaycee; Paritpilo, Nicholas; Thomson, John; Willenbrink, Rayna; Wimer, Zachary; Winters, Brittany; Bullock, Justin; Client
Combined Arms Consulting
(2020) Ruelas, Samantha; McKenzie, James; Byrum, Joseph; Sawyer, Blake; Seekatz, Morgan; Gjesdal, Nethaniel; Kim, Dohun; Deupree, Zane; Brown, William; Client
The Bush School of Government and Public Service graduate students at Texas A&M University worked with Combined Arms, Houston, from September 2019 through April 2020 to provide research-driven recommendations to substantiate the service model and facilitate expansion. The report consists of three components. First is a case summary that provides an objective assessment of the Combined Arms veteran service model, substantiated with academic literature, interviews with member organization, and the Combined Arms leadership team.Section two provides a detailed analysis of the services Combined Arms offers to the member organizations and explores which are perceived as the most beneficial. The report also investigates how Combined Arms’ 2019 budget aligns with the services that are valued by the member organizations. Section three provides information on veterans and the services available to veterans in Dallas, Tarrant, and Bexar counties as an initial exploration of the expansion opportunities in these regions.
Healthy Discussions: A community assessment and healthcare gap analysis
(2015) Rodriguez, Jesse; Reisor, Hannah; Smith, Brian; Rosser, Wynn; Knapp Community Care Foundation
Envisioning a Bright Future for New Braunfels Children: A Community-Based Approach to School Readiness
(2015) Fanomezantsoa, Herilala; Hopkins, Elizabeth; Tooley, Kathryn; Morrison, Jenny Knowles; McKenna Foundation
Professionalization and Effectiveness in State Legislatures
(2015) Bangcaya, Matthew; DiGiuseppe, Thomas; Dodd, Blake; Gruning, Christopher; Parma, Rebecca; Robertson, Johannah; Bowman, Ann O'M.; Texas Legislature
The 84th regular session of the Texas Legislature will convene in Austin on January 13, 2015, and is scheduled to run through June 1, 2015. Students in this capstone will spend the fall semester learning about state legislatures in general and the Texas Legislature in particular. During the spring semester, students will relocate to Austin to work for state legislators, legislative committees, or legislative agencies. The specific legislators and committees have not been finalized as yet, but students can expect to have opportunities to use their analytic skills. Even though students will have different work assignments during the spring semester, we will come together as a capstone class regularly. Students will produce a capstone report that builds on their fall semester study and their spring semester work experiences. The actual substance of the report will be determined by the capstone class; but it could address session milestones (significant legislation adopted/defeated/deferred); noteworthy shifts in policy (e.g., redistricting in the 82nd session, the rainy day fund in the 83rd session); or, possibly, a comparison of Texas legislative actions to those in other states as well as the identification and discussion of issues on the horizon for the 85th session.
Understanding Poverty in Brazos County
(2016) Dell, Brian; Diez, Belen; Harris, Whitney; Knechtel, JJ; Matthews, Allison; Thompson, William; Rosser, Wynn; Bryan/College Station Salvation Army
House Bill 5: The New Shape of Texas High School Education
(2016) Terry, Ryan; Gammon, Hallie; Mullen, Eva; Dearmon, Will; Alexander, Leah; Morrison, Jenny Knowles; Texas Education Grantmakers Advocacy Consortium
The Bush School/Law School Capstone on State and Local Trade Barriers
(2016) Dean, James; Dierker, Benjamin R.; Connally, Thomas; Franklin, Gregory; Gaber, Isis; Gullo, Stephanie; Lesnau, Jessica; Lincoln, Charles Edward Andrew IV; Marsh, Rachel; Riyaz, Fatima; Roberto, Cinthya; Sankey, Michael Scott; Self, Ryan; Mumpower, Jeryl L.; Morriss, Andrew P.; Henning, William H.; North American Strategy for Competitiveness (NASCO)
The client for this capstone is the North American Strategy for Competitiveness (NASCO), a nonprofit voluntary coalition of North American governments, businesses, and educational institutions. One of NASCO’s core missions is improving the competitiveness of the North American supply chain. NASCO is concerned that regulatory efforts at the state and local level are creating barriers to trade along the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) corridor. This capstone will provide NASCO with a careful description of the trade frictions that occur as a product moves across national and state boundaries and a framework for dealing with regulations that impose undue burdens on the free flow of goods and services in North America.
Bridging Perspectives: Data Protection, Privacy, and Security In The U.S. & Germany
(2016) Cottingham, Erica; DeAmaral, Meghan; Gray, Colin; Harst, Lisa; Murgas, Gabriel; Xiang, Jingyi; Zhou, Yilan; Hilderbrand, Mary; Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC), Dr. Philipp Mueller, Director, Public Sector-Europe
Following Edward Snowden’s revelations of extensive NSA surveillance, including data gathering from German citizens and political leaders, there have been tensions in the US-German relationship (as well as in the larger US-European relationship) over the interrelated areas of surveillance/intelligence and data protection/privacy. The conflict hinders transatlantic business operations, including those of the IT sector; and it also has broader public policy implications, as it has created obstacles to progress on issues of common interest, including trade agreements. The two countries approach questions of data protection and privacy as well as those surrounding electronic intelligence gathering from quite different perspectives, and there is a lack of understanding on each side of the other’s perspectives.
Reorganizing Groundwater Regulation in Texas
(2016) Brady, Ross; Beckermann, Wayne; Capps, Amber; Kennedy, Braden; McGee, Peyton; Northcut, Kayla; Parish, Mason; Qadeer, Abdullilah; Shan, Shuting; Griffin, James; Honorable Glenn Hegar, Texas State Comptroller of Public Accounts
Groundwater usage in Texas appears severely dysfunctional. Neither the market for water or regulation is working properly. Currently, 80+ Groundwater Conservation Districts (GCDs) “regulate” groundwater production in their areas, with locally elected boards that act as independent Balkanized states. Selling water across district lines is very difficult, making cities like San Antonio unable to access abundant groundwater in nearby GCDs. At the same time, landowners own the rights to groundwater based on the Rule of Capture, which creates a perverse incentive to extract all you can before your neighbor does.
College Station 2030: Issues Affecting a Growing Community
(2017) Baizhanov, Sanzhar; Haynes, Samantha; Holleman, William; Magee, Andrew; McLeod, Garrett; Medeiros, Brett; Rothenberger, Reagan; Sanchez, Enrique; Yi, Jeah; Young, Grady; Mumpower, Jeryl; City of College Station, Texas
Examining the Prevalence of Financial Exploitation of Individuals Suffering from Alzheimer’s and Dementia Related Diseases in Texas
(2017) Gabler, Nicole; Harrison, Christina; Leal, Dianey; McCrory, Elizabeth; Rege, Jyotsna; Sankar, Sarayu; Thomas, Sydney; Kerr, Deborah L.; Alzheimer’s Association of Houston and Southeast Texas in Houston, Texas
The Alzheimer’s Association of Houston and Southeast Texas (Association) is committed to expanding care and services for individuals with Alzheimer’s disease through awareness, research, and legislation. The Association has asked the Bush School capstone team to examine the prevalence of elder financial exploitation in Texas, specifically among individuals with Alzheimer’s and dementia-related diseases. The result of this examination will assist the Association’s policy and recommendation agenda during the 2019 Texas Legislative Session.
The Search for Smart Schools: Identifying Texas School Districts’ Best Practices
(2017) Coyle, Shannon; Dick, Amanda; Griffin, Marlisa; Hood, Joseph; Tihanyi, Daniel; Cole, Catherine; Smart Schools Initiative
This report outlines findings from the TXSmartSchools.org (TSS) Capstone Team’s mixed methodology study identifying best practices in high performing and cost-efficient school districts. TSS was particularly interested in finding best practices transferable from high performing school districts to low performing districts. The Capstone Team accomplished this using the TSS concept of “fiscal peers.” After completing a narrative literature review on the best practices in public education, the Capstone Team examined the effect of various school district expenditures on academic performance and cost efficiency through quantitative methods. The Capstone Team’s findings suggest the amount of money invested in practices are not indicative of the quality of the programs. Additional findings demonstrate the administrative cost ratio caps do not improve cost efficiency, and investments in bilingual education are associated with improved academic performance. To better describe the practices employed in school districts, semistructured interviews were conducted with school district officials. The findings from interviews with chief business officers and superintendents capture the importance of culture in district practices and operations. Based on the quantitative and qualitative findings, the Capstone Team makes recommendations that can be implemented at the district and state level. Further research is needed that will allow educators and researchers to better identify the best practices that will improve Texas schools’ and districts’ student academic achievement and fiscal efficiency.
Texas vs. the Federal Government: An Examination of the Influence of Political Ideologies on State-Filed Lawsuits
(2017) Calahan, Becky; Drastata, Danielle; Garcia, Ann Marie; Gaskin, Matthew; Perales, Jesus; Philpot, Patrick; Plowman, Theo; Bowman, Ann O'M.; Client
This study explores the role of ideology in the filing of lawsuits by the state of Texas against the federal government. Four important policy areas are examined: criminal justice, environmental protection, immigration, and social issues. The time period of the study encompasses an ideological spectrum in Texas government and among the American presidents holding office at the same time as the governors. To gain a comparative focus, the Texas lawsuit data is contrasted with federal lawsuits filed by Florida and California. The analysis shows no clear connection between ideology and the number of lawsuits filed by the three states.
Surface Water Regulation in Texas: Problems and Solutions
(2017) Vaca, Maria; Richards, Stefni; Davis, Alexa; Jackson, Kylie; Timur, Nanag; Manzoor, Fahad; Azam, Said; Feltman, Robert, Jr.; Griffin, James; Honorable Glenn Hegar, Texas State Comptroller of Public Accounts
According to the 2017 Texas State Water Plan, Texas will experience an 8.9 million acre foot water shortage by 2070. The question is what role surface and groundwater will play in alleviating this shortfall. The 2016 Capstone project to Comptroller Hegar assessed the potential for ground water to meet these predicted water needs (the Brady et al. report). This report is a follow on report focused on surface water. In several ways, surface water poses a more complex task because one cannot point to a single regulatory institution with simple fixes. Indeed, in many respects, surface water institutions in Texas are relatively sophisticated. From the extensive WAM modeling used by the Texas Commission on Environment Quality (TCEQ) to the comprehensive 50-year water plans produced by the Texas Water Development Board (TWBD), Texas is significantly ahead of other states in their water planning and management. However, our analysis has identified three major problem areas, the solutions to which are the focus of this report.

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