BATON ROUGE – The Public Administration Institute, an integral part of LSU’s E. J. Ourso College of Business, has received full accreditation from the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration for seven years.
According to PAI Director James Richardson, who is also the Harris J. and Marie P. Chustz Distinguished Professor in Business Administration, the accreditation team that visited the campus had glowing praise for the institute’s students and alumni.
“The site visit team was impressed with how many of our graduates are among the top managers in state and local government,” Richardson said. “We always knew how good the program was, but we are very pleased to now have been fully accredited by the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration.”
LSU E. J. Ourso College Dean Eli Jones shared Richardson’s sentiment and stated that students thinking about public administration for their career should strongly consider LSU’s PAI.
“The Public Administration Institute is another ‘crown jewel’ in the E. J. Ourso College of Business,” Jones said. “Dr. Jim Richardson and the PAI faculty have done a tremendous job over many years building PAI’s curriculum and placing graduates in public administration in Louisiana and across the U.S.
“Earning the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration accreditation validates the institute’s quality, given it has gone through a rigorous process of voluntary peer review conducted by the Commission on Peer Review and Accreditation, and it has met the association’s Standards for Professional Master's Degree Programs in Public Affairs, Policy and Administration.”
NASPAA accredited programs must contribute to the knowledge, research and practice of public service, and they must establish observable goals and outcomes and use information about their performance to guide program improvement.
The Public Administration Institute at LSU’s E. J. Ourso College of Business offers a 42-hour degree program that emphasizes management and financial skills for those leading public agencies, nonprofit and healthcare organizations and for-profit organizations that interact with governmental agencies. PAI’s faculty members are student-oriented and nationally recognized for their expertise in their fields. For more information, visit www.bus.lsu.edu/pai or call 225-578-6743.
