Teaching Public Budgeting and Finance: A Practical Guide

Many universities offer the Master of Public Administration (MPA) or other public affairs degree, which includes at least one course in public budgeting or public financial management. The faculty who teach these courses can however sometimes struggle to cover the breadth of material required and to fully engage students in what can be a technical subject. Teaching Public Budgeting and Finance: A Practical Guide addresses this challenge by sharing hands-on classroom expertise from leading scholars and creative instructors in the field. Drawing on their extensive experiences with teaching, researching, and engaging in service, each contributor reflects on how their area of expertise can be taught most effectively, providing a discussion of student learning outcomes, pedagogical approaches, relevant resources, and appropriate course assignments.

While no one book can provide a final say on classroom instruction, this first-of-its kind primer on teaching public budgeting and financial management courses is a detailed, indispensable guide for all faculty looking to improve the learning experience of students in the classroom. Teaching Public Budgeting and Finance: A Practical Guide is required reading for early career faculty as they prepare to teach the course for what may be the first time, as well as for more senior faculty looking to update their course, complement their own teaching strengths, or teaching the course for the first time in several years.

Meagan M. Jordan is an associate professor of public budgeting and finance in the School of Public Service at Old Dominion University, USA. She previously served as the secretary of the Association for Budgeting and Financial Management and is the chair of the Budget and Finance Management Section of the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration. She serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Public Affairs Education. She has taught, consulted, and trained in the areas of performance budgeting, budget process, ethical management, and strategic planning. Her research focuses on state and local government budget theory and process, revenue policy, and popular financial reporting and transparency. Her research has appeared in journals such as Public Budgeting and Finance, Public Finance and Management, Journal of Government Financial Management, Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting, and Financial Management, American Review of Public Administration, Public Administration Quarterly, and Journal of Policy Analysis and Management.

Bruce D. McDonald III, is an associate professor of public budgeting and finance at North Carolina State University, USA. He also serves as the editor-in-chief of Public Administration, co-editor-in-chief of the Journal of Public Affairs Education, co-editor of Routledge’s Public Affairs Education Book Series, and president of the North Carolina Public Administration Alliance. His research focuses on public budgeting and finance in the context of the fiscal health of local governments. His research has appeared in journals such as Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, Public Administration Review, and the American Review of Public Administration.