CIPA Named Regional Host for 2018 NASPAA-Batten Student Simulation Competition

CIPA has been selected as one of 16 host sites internationally for the 2018 NASPAA-Batten Student Simulation Competition. The announcement was made at the NASPAA annual conference in Washington, D.C. on Oct. 13.  

NASPAA –the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration—is the membership organization of graduate education programs in public policy, public affairs, public administration, and public and nonprofit management. They sponsor these annual competitions to support public service education pedagogy.

"The gap between the science and art of policy making cannot always be realized within the four walls of a classroom,” NASPAA says. "In their [future] jobs, students will be asked to work with new team members, negotiate for a stated position, accomplish goals under a tight deadline, and create thoughtful presentations and reports."

The competition calls for students to gather at different university locations around the globe on one of two set-dates (2/24 or 3/3) and compete in a one-day immersive simulation on a pre-chosen public policy challenge. This year, the subject matter will be preparation for a global pandemic. Divided into teams, each group prepares strategy recommendations and presents them to local site judges. Winners at each site then go on to compete against each other for the overall top award.

"We are very honored CIPA was selected as a regional host.  The focus of this year’s event, pandemic crisis management, is an area that Cornell, and the College of Human Ecology, specifically, has unique strengths to address,” says CIPA Executive Director Thomas O’Toole.  “We hope this simulation will provide our students with the opportunity to carefully reflect on the roles MPA graduates can play in mitigating the impacts of a global pandemic. I also want to express my sincere thanks to one of our instructors, Rebecca Brenner, who teaches courses for CIPA on disaster recovery and prevention, for submitting a strong proposal to NASPAA."

CIPA has been assigned the March 3 simulation date and will host approximately 30 to 40 public policy students. Participants are chosen from a pool of applicants. Students must apply individually on the competition website.  Deans and directors of policy programs may nominate up to three students, who are then given priority status.

This Simulation Competition was first designed by NASPAA in 2015 to support and encourage more experiential learning in the classroom, especially in the realm of public policy and administration education.  In 2016, NASPAA announced a five-year affiliation agreement to partner with the University of Virginia Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy for its Student Simulation Competition.