School of Public and International Affairs

---

---

Overview

The School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA) provides opportunities for students interested in public issues to gain perspectives and skills from several related disciplines. SPIA is a school within the College of Architecture and Urban Studies, and is comprised of the Center for Public Administration and Policy, the Government and International Affairs Program, the Urban Affairs and Planning Program, and the SPIA Undergraduate Program that offers a B.A. in Public and Urban Affairs (PUA) and two majors in Smart and Sustainable Cities (SSC) and Environmental Policy and Planning (EPP).

SPIA also provides a Washington, D.C. Semester in Global Engagement (during the Spring and Fall semesters) and a Washington, D.C. Semester in Leadership through Policy and Governance (during the summer session). Information on the SPIA Undergraduate Program can be obtained from the SPIA website. Information on graduate programs may be obtained from the Center for Public Administration and Policy, Government and International Affairs, and Urban Affairs and Planning.

B.A. in Public and Urban Affairs

Smart and Sustainable Cities Major (SSC)

The Smart and Sustainable Cities (SSC) major is one of the first majors of its kind in the United States. In the major, students will learn the dynamics of urban change across time, space, and place. Students will gain a deep understanding of sustainable urban development and how smart technology and urban analytics can be combined to create solutions for the cities of the future.

The core of the major consists of two parallel tracks. The first track focuses on urban analytics and decision-making. In this track, students will develop modeling and data visualization skills that can be applied to understand urban and regional systems in data-driven, quantitative, and computational ways.

The second track focuses on sustainable urbanization and the future of cities. Students in this track will study the process of urbanization. Specific attention given to the interdependence of social, economic, environmental and technological factors and how these evolve over time.

Both of these tracks are then integrated through a course on data and the art of decision-making and a fusion studio where students will apply their knowledge to real problems.

Environmental Policy and Planning Major (EPP)

Promoting sustainable human interaction with the natural environment continues to be one of the critical challenges facing societies around the world. While science and technology are critical to meeting this challenge, they must be supported by policies and plans responsive to diverse political, economic, sociocultural, institutional, and regulatory contexts.

The Environmental Policy and Planning (EPP) major provides students with an interdisciplinary framework to view environmental problems. Students will obtain the knowledge and skills needed to function as policymakers and planners who can understand complex environmental issues and develop enduring solutions.

The EPP major builds on the Public and Urban Affairs (PUA) degree core that provides students with foundational knowledge in policy, planning, governance, and international affairs. The EPP major extends this knowledge through an interconnected sequence of courses that explore environmental policy and planning, land use, and environmental law. EPP students will also develop their expertise by selecting one more elective from three subject areas: Policy; Planning; and Environment and Conservation.

Degree Requirements

The graduation requirements in effect at the time of graduation apply. When choosing the degree requirements information, always choose the year of your expected date of graduation. Requirements for graduation are referred to via university publications as "Checksheets". The number of credit hours required for degree completion varies among curricula. Students must satisfactorily complete all requirements and university obligations for degree completion.

The university reserves the right to modify requirements in a degree program. However, the university will not alter degree requirements less than two years from the expected graduation year unless there is a transition plan for students already in the degree program.

Please visit the University Registrar website at http://registrar.vt.edu/graduation-multi-brief/index1.html for degree requirements.

Satisfactory Progress

University policy requires that students who are making satisfactory progress toward a degree meet minimum criteria toward the General Education (Curriculum for Liberal Education) (see "Academics") and toward the degree in Urban Affairs and Planning.

Satisfactory progress requirements toward the B.A. in Public and Urban Affairs can be found on the major checksheet by visiting the University Registrar website at http://registrar.vt.edu/graduation-multi-brief/index1.html.

Undergraduate Course Descriptions (SPIA)

1024: COMMUNITY SERVICE LEARNING
An introduction to community service learning with emphasis on the development of civic agency. Critical perspectives on community, ethical community engagement, service and volunteerism, servant leadership, and social change. Exposure to the socio-political dynamics inherent in community development and problem solving. Includes significant community engagement and service-learning experiences, reflection, and the development of a personal community engagement action plan. (3H,3C)

2005,2006: INTRODUCTION TO URBAN ANALYTICS SPIA
2005: Introduction to modeling, simulation, and visualization. How models can be used to examine complex urban problems. Ethical issues in the application of computational models. Basic model building without data. SPIA 2006: Identifying data sources for simulation model building and testing. Developing and using a model to understand a complex urban problem. Manipulating models to achieve desired outcomes. Ethical issues in computational models, including data collection and data use. (1H,1C)

2024: COMMUNITY SYSTEMS THINKING
Introduction to systems thinking concepts and their application to community-based problem solving and decision making. Emphasis on identifying interactions between technical and contextual dimensions of persistent, complex global problems. Introduces systemic frameworks for defining problems, identifying and engaging stakeholders, ideating interventions, selecting and employing criteria for decision making, and creating feedback mechanisms for iterative design. Ethics of community engagement is considered. Includes problem- based service-learning projects. (3H,3C)

2104: URBAN ANALYTICS FOR DECISION-MAKING
Use and critique of large-scale computational models for urban planning and decision-making. Information synthesis, agent-based simulation, and simulation analytics techniques for analysis of urban and regional systems. Value-sensitive design and ethical use of computational models. (1H,1C)

2114: PUBLIC SERVICE LEADERSHIP
Definition and practice of leadership in the public and nonprofit sectors, and its relationship to democratic governance. Decision-making under varying degrees of certainty and ambiguity. Exploring the relationship between public values and the public interest. Evidence for decisions. Case study engagement and presentation. (1H,1C)

2244 (GEOG 2244): SUSTAINABLE URBANIZATION
Process of urbanization and theories and approaches of urban development. Debates on the meanings of sustainable urbanization and development in cities and how they are measured. Urban sustainability initiatives in the context of urban political economies, land-use practices, urban inequality and diversity, urban nature, and urban policy and politics. Programs and policies designed to enhance sustainable urbanization. Comparative approach and global perspective. (3H,3C)

2314 (HNFE 2314): ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION FOR A HEALTHY, SUSTAINABLE PLANET
Connections among active transportation (e.g., bicycling, walking) and significant global challenges such as physical inactivity, health, the environment, and the economy on local to global scales. Methods to assess walkability among communities with different worldviews and the influence of the built environment on rates of active transportation. Approaches to evaluate demographic and psychosocial predictors and physical and policy barriers to use of active transportation. Successful strategies to increase active transportation through community design guidelines, behavior change tools, transportation planning, and policy. (3H,3C)

2554: COLLABORATIVE POLICY-MAKING & PLANNING
Introduction to multi-stakeholder collaboration and public participation in planning, policy-making and public administration. Tools and approaches for engagement and effective collaboration. Deliberative and participatory democracy, and transparency in society. Information sharing and access. Civil society, the media and citizen activism. Ethical and moral issues in collaboration. Barriers to participation, and diversity and inclusion. (3H,3C)

2984: SPECIAL STUDY
Variable credit course.

3554: TRANSDISCIPLINARY PROBLEM SOLVING FOR SOCIAL ISSUES
Strategies and skills for transdisciplinary problem solving. Emphasis on integrative thinking strategies and cognitive and interpersonal skills required to bridge scientific discipline-based, non-scientific discipline-based and cultural knowledge. Strategies to identify important disciplinary, non-scientific, ethical, cultural, and structural elements of a problem. Problem-based learning, ethics, team work, and effective communication skills. (3H,3C)

3954: STUDY ABROAD
Variable credit course.

3984: SPECIAL STUDY
Variable credit course.

4374: FEDERAL CYBERSECURITY POLICY AND REGULATION
This course seeks to give students an understanding of how the government develops new cybersecurity regulations and policies that balance consumer interest in personal protection with industry attitudes towards oversight. The course also covers the policies that government entities take in the interest of national security to maintain state secrets in the face of threats from hackers and other hostile actors. Pre: FIN 4014. (3H,3C)

4454: FUTURE OF CITIES
Cities as complex systems. Interdependence of social, economic, environmental, and technological components and how these change over time. Theories about city formation, structure, and change, with implications for sustainability, resilience, and globalization. Pre: GEOG 2244 or SPIA 2244. (3H,3C)

4464: DATA AND THE ART OF POLICY-MAKING AND PLANNING
Critical examination of use of scientific and technical information in planning and policy-making, exploring issues and challenges through social science lens. Investigation of appropriate and responsible use of data within collaborative and deliberative policy-making and planning processes. Presentation of data and underlying models in accessible and understandable formats. Integrating all forms of knowledge into decision-making, including local and traditional knowledge. (3H,3C)

4554 (BSE 4554) (FREC 4554) (HORT 4554) (LAR 4554): CREATING THE ECOLOGICAL CITY
Multidisciplinary, team oriented, problem-solving approaches to creating cities that foster healthy interconnections between human and ecological systems. Analysis of problems from practical and ethical perspectives in the context of the diverse knowledge bases and values of decision-makers. Formation and utilization of integrated design teams to solve complex urban design and planning problems at a variety of scales. Senior standing. Pre: HORT 2134 or FREC 2134. (3H,3C)

4724: CYBERLEADERS CAPSTONE
Interdisciplinary research and analysis from technical and policy standpoints of regulation and industry standards, leading to the development and communication of possible solutions for specific cybersecurity problems related to critical systems. Previous topics include cellphone encryption and Internet of Things security. Co: 4374. (2H,12L,6C)

4784: COMMUNITY SYSTEMS CAPSTONE
Collaborative community problem solving in team environments Data collection, interpretation, and presentation augment community-based, iterative design and planning processes. Consideration of ethical engagement and community goals related to social justice, resilience, and sustainability. Discourse-based project culminating in presentation of intervention proposals to stakeholders. Pre: 3 credits in Discourse. Pre: (1024 or SOC 2034), SPIA 2024. (3H,3C)

4964: FIELD WORK/PRACTICUM
Variable credit course. X-grade allowed.

4984: SPECIAL STUDY
Variable credit course.

Undergraduate Course Descriptions (UAP)

1004: INTRODUCTION TO CAREERS IN URBAN AFFAIRS AND PLANNING
Introduces academic requirements for the Public and Urban Affairs (PUA) and Environmental Policy and Planning (EPP) majors. Assists students with academic planning and career exploration. Students develop an ePortfolio to document their personal and professional growth in the major. Course must be taken during the first semester in the PUA or EPP program. (1H,1C)

1024: PUBLIC ISSUES IN AN URBAN SOCIETY
This class introduces some of the most vital concerns and issues challenging democratic capitalistic urban societies today. Topics addressed include different perspectives on the causes and portent of the urban underclass, the growing inequality between the educated and less well educated in the nation’s labor markets, the causes of the marked resegregation of many of the nation’s urban centers by race and income and the implications of privatization and interjurisdictional competition for the public policy behavior and outcomes of subnational governments. (3H,3C)

2004 (REAL 2004): PRINCIPLES OF REAL ESTATE
Introduction to real estate, including markets, land use planning and zoning, development, finance, construction, sales, marketing, management and property valuation. Examines the key actors and processes in each of these areas. Explores major public policies impacting real estate. (3H,3C)

2014: URBANIZATION AND DEVELOPMENT
Relationships between urbanization and economic development; role of cities in social, political, cultural, and economic development of societies; cities as settings for innovation and change. (3H,3C)

2964: FIELD STUDY
Pass/Fail only. Variable credit course.

2984: SPECIAL STUDY
Variable credit course.

3014: URBAN POLICY AND PLANNING
An introduction to urban policy and urban planning. Includes analysis of the basic concepts and principles of urban policy, a review of urban policy in the United States, discussion of the development of urban planning and its role in shaping the urban environment, and an analysis of the relationship between public policy and planning and the organization and structure of the urban environment. Pre: 1024. (3H,3C)

3024: URBAN AND REGIONAL ANALYSIS
Overview and application of various methods used to study, represent, understand communities in their urban and regional context. Data collection and analysis; population, land use, transportation and economic forecasting; selecting and applying an appropriate method; designing and presenting a community study. Restricted to majors and minors only. (3H,3C)

3224: POLICY IMPLEMENTATION
Systematic analysis of the field and practice of public policy implementation. Includes analysis of the structure and dynamics of the policy process as well as specific analytic approaches to understanding policy implementation. Includes analysis of intra-organizational, interorganizational and intergovernmental implementation processes. Pre: 3014, STAT 3604. (3H,3C)

3264: CONTEMPORARY URBAN ISSUES
Consideration of one particular issue of immediate importance to the contemporary urban environment. Topics emphasize major social or economic policy issues, and may change each year. Junior standing required. (3H,3C)

3344 (PSCI 3344): GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES: INTERDISCIPLINARY PERSPECTIVES
Critical examination of major global environmental problems (e.g., global warming, atmospheric ozone depletion, acid rain, tropical deforestation, toxic waste) with emphasis on their social, economic, political, ethical, and policy implications and solutions. Completion of Area 4 of University Core required. (3H,3C)

3354: INTRODUCTION TO ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND PLANNING
Introduction to the interdisciplinary principles of environmental policy, planning, economics, and ethics to address pollution abatement, resources conservation, habitat protection, and environmental restoration. The course will focus on practical means of identifying environmental problems and creatively solving them. (3H,3C)

3434 (PSCI 3414): PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION
The role and context of public administration in the contemporary United States, administrative organization and decision-making, public finance, human resources administration, and program implementation. Pre: PSCI 1014. (3H,3C)

3444 (PSCI 3444): ADMINISTRATIVE LAW AND POLICY
The legal context of the exercise of discretion by public administrators in the United States. Adjudication and rule- making; access to administrative processes and information; legislative and judicial control of administration. Pre: PSCI 1014. (3H,3C)

3464 (AHRM 3464) (APS 3464) (GEOG 3464) (HD 3464) (HUM 3464) (SOC 3464): APPALACHIAN COMMUNITIES
The concept of community in Appalachia using an interdisciplinary approach and experiential learning. Interrelationships among geographically, culturally, and socially constituted communities, public policy, and human development. Pre: Junior standing. (3H,3C)

3714 (PSCI 3714): THE U. S. POLICY PROCESS
Description and analysis of the processes and institutions involved in the making and implementation of public policy in the United States, with a primary focus on domestic and economic policy. Empirical and normative models of the process of public policy making in the U.S. Pre: PSCI 1014. (3H,3C)

3744 (PSCI 3744): PUBLIC POLICY ANALYSIS
Methods and approaches used in the analysis and evaluation of public policy; strengths and limitations of various analytic tools; normative issues in the practice of policy analysis. Pre: PSCI 1014 or PSCI 1014H. (3H,3C)

3774 (PSCI 3774): MARXIAN POLITICAL ANALYSIS
Contemporary uses of Marxian concepts and theories to study the world economy, business structure, current social issues, modern ethical values, and alienation. Pre: PSCI 1014 or PSCI 1014H. (3H,3C)

3954: STUDY ABROAD
Variable credit course.

3984: SPECIAL STUDY
Variable credit course.

4184: COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
Issues, concepts, and techniques of citizen participation in community development. Institutional frameworks and their historical precedents. Exercises developing group communications skills, public meeting facilitation, and design of community involvement programs. Pre: Senior standing required. (3H,3C)

4214 (GEOG 4214) (WGS 4214): GENDER, ENVIRONMENT, AND INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Key concepts and critiques related to the intersection of gender, environment, and international development. Development institutions and organizations with relationship to gender and environment. Theoretical and applied perspectives on eco-feminism; bio-diversity; climate change; feminist political ecology; agriculture and natural resources; participatory methods and empowerment. Case studies from Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Pre: Junior Standing. (3H,3C)

4264: ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS AND POLICY
Issues in applied environmental ethics. Contributions of diverse religious and philosophical traditions to contemporary perspectives on the human-nature relationship. Examination of environmental policies from utilitarian economic, deep ecology, and ecofeminist perspectives. Junior, senior or graduate standing required. (3H,3C)

4344: LAW OF CRITICAL ENVIRONMENTAL AREAS
This course examines the legal principles and policy debates involved in the regulation and protection of critical environmental resources. Specific topics vary but will likely include wetlands law and policy, endangered species habitat, open space, forestland and farmland protection, coastal zone management, and floodplain regulation and policy. (3H,3C)

4354: INTERDISCIPLINARY ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEM SOLVING STUDIO
Interdisciplinary, experiential problem solving studio focusing on specific environmental problems. Working in groups, students interact with local officials, consultants, developers, environmental groups to explore the processes of environmental management, regulation and mitigation, applying techniques and skills frequently used by environmental planners and policy-makers. Senior status required and 9 credit hours, 3000-level or above, in the Environmental Policy and Planning major or minor; Pre: 3354, 3224. (2H,5L,4C)

4364: SEMINAR IN ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND PLANNING
Critical examination of the social, political, economic, legal, scientific, and technological contexts underlying processes of environmental change, problems, and solutions, as seen from various conceptual and disciplinary perspectives. Senior status required and 9 credit hours, 3000-level or above, in the Environmental Policy and Planning major or minor. Pre: 3354, 3224. (2H,2C)

4374: LAND USE AND ENVIRONMENT: PLANNING AND POLICY
Environmental factors involved in land use planning and development, including topography, soils, geologic hazards, flooding and stormwater management, ecological features, and visual quality. Techniques used in conducting environmental land inventories and land suitability analyses. Policies and programs to protect environmental quality in land use planning and development. Pre: Junior standing. (3H,3C)

4384: POLLUTION CONTROL PLANNING AND POLICY
Planning and policy aspects of managing residuals and environmental contaminants and their effects on human health and environmental quality. Technical and economic factors involved in management of water quality, air quality, solid and hazardous wastes, toxic substances, and noise. Implementation of pollution control legislation, policies, and programs at federal, state, and local levels. (3H,3C)

4394: COMMUNITY RENEWABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS
Practical design fundamentals for small scale renewable energy systems: solar building heating and cooling; solar domestic hot water; wind, photovoltaic, and hydroelectric systems; alcohol, methane and other biomass conversion systems. Developing plans, programs, and policies to stimulate development of renewable systems. Pre: (MATH 1016 or MATH 1025). (3H,3C)

4624 (PSCI 4624): THE WASHINGTON SEMESTER: SEMINAR IN AMERICAN POLITICS AND PUBLIC POLICY
This seminar is the integrative forum for the principal elements of the Washington Semester experience. The course explores both the role of political institutions in policy formation and implementation and the primary managerial and leadership challenges that arise for implementing organization managers in American democratic public policy-making. Pre: Junior standing or instructor consent and acceptance into the Washington Semester program. X-grade allowed. (3H,3C)

4644 (PSCI 4644): THE WASHINGTON SEMESTER: POLITICS, POLICY AND ADMINISTRATION IN A DEMOCRACY
This course is part of the Washington Semester. Explores the relationship between the imperatives of democratic mobilization, policy choices and organizational choices through intensive study of the operating context of a selected public or nonprofit organization. Examines implications of policy-maker choices for implementing institution dynamics and challenges. Pre: Junior standing and acceptance into the Washington Semester program required. X-grade allowed. Pre: PSCI 3714. (3H,3C)

4714: ECONOMICS AND FINANCING OF STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS
Examines the provision and financing of public goods and services in local governments. Analyzes associated policy issues. Reviews experience in Western Europe and developing countries, as well as in the United States. Pre: 3024, (ECON 2005 or ECON 2005H), (ECON 2006 or ECON 2006H). (3H,3C)

4754: LEGAL FOUNDATIONS OF PLANNING
Examination of the legal context in which urban planning and public policy operate. Legal structure, role of law, powers of sovereign governments, constitutional limitations on government activities, and public-private conflict and their influence on planning and public policy are examined. Pre: Junior standing required. (3H,3C)

4764 (GEOG 4764) (SOC 4764): INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT POLICY AND PLANNING
Examination of major development theories and contemporary issues and characteristics of low-income societies (industrialization, urbanization, migration, rural poverty, hunger, foreign trade, and debt) that establish contexts for development planning and policy-making. Junior standing required. (3H,3C)

4854: PLANNING OF THE URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE
Course examines the interdependences among the elements of the built environment of the city and those between the elements of the built environment and the policy/planning structure of the city. Considered are those elements associated with the primary urban activities (residential, commercial, industrial) as well as the urban form-giving infrastructure facilities that support those land uses (water supply, sewerage, solid waste disposal, transportation, education, recreation, health, and safety). Pre: 4754. (3H,3C)

4914: SEMINAR IN PUBLIC AND URBAN AFFAIRS
This capstone seminar explores the central questions of the role of the citizen and the citizenry in democratic capitalistic urban societies as well as the nature of accountability in such regimes. Topics such as the processes by which representation occurs, alternate theories of democratic community and the relationship of the public, private and civil sectors in urban society are treated. Senior status in PUA required. PUA majors and minors must complete this course with a C grade or higher to graduate; otherwise course must be repeated. Pre: 4754, SPIA 2554, SPIA 3554. (3H,3C)

4954: STUDY ABROAD
Variable credit course.

4964: FIELD STUDY
Variable credit course. X-grade allowed.

4964H: HONORS FIELD STUDY
Variable credit course.

4974: INDEPENDENT STUDY
Variable credit course. X-grade allowed.

4984: SPECIAL STUDY
Variable credit course.

4994: UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH
Variable credit course.