Public Administration and International Affairs Department News, Media Commentary and Research

The event will be held in the K.G. Tan Auditorium on Sept. 14, and features a screening of the documentary, The Heroism and Resiliency of 9/11: From Tragedy to Triumph, produced by Maxwell alumnus Chris Meek.

The next Maxwell School-sponsored blood drive is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 9, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Schine Student Center.

“Over the last few years, election denialism has become something of a litmus test within the Republican Party,” says Richard Barton, assistant teaching professor of public administration and international affairs.

Andrew Lunetta found his focus at the Maxwell School—now he’s a ‘CNN Hero’ building homes for people who need them most.

“Even though the federal government spends nearly $100 billion annually on SNAP, there is no federally funded survey or data source that can evaluate this important change to the program,” writes Colleen Heflin, professor of public administration and international affairs.

“There is some support for the claim that ideologues can more effectively mobilize the base and activate new voters, but they are also more effective at mobilizing opposition,” says Richard Barton, assistant teaching professor of public administration and international affairs.

Five Syracuse faculty, including Maxwell professors Ryan Griffiths and Colleen Heflin, share findings on food policy, AI, architecture, political science and marine biology on the nationally broadcast program “The Academic Minute.”

“These are both terrible policy and politics,” says Leonard Burman, professor emeritus of public administration and international affairs. The benefits of both would “disproportionately accrue to the wealthiest households,” given the existing distribution of assets in the U.S., he says.

When Louise Gartner Birkhead arrived at the Maxwell School in 1951 to begin a master of public administration degree, she was one of only two women in her class. The education and training she received shaped a career devoted to public service and a lifelong drive to open doors in government for the women who would follow her. Birkhead died July 13 at the age of 97.

“Deployments of this length put a great deal of pressure on the ship and its crew, with long-term impact on personnel, sustainment of the ship and the turnaround cycle for future deployments,” says Vice Adm. Robert Murrett (Ret.), professor of practice of public administration and international affairs.

Co-authored by Colleen Heflin, professor of public administration and international affairs, and Maxwell alumna Hyojeong Kim, the article was published in Demography.

Jiahuan Lu, associate professor of public administration and international affairs, has co-edited a new research handbook, Nonprofit Organization Management in China: Research and Practice (Routledge, 2026). The volume examines nonprofit management in China through a comparative, organizational lens rather than the state-society framework common in earlier scholarship. 

Four faculty members have received tenure in their promotion to associate professor, while one has been promoted to full professor and another to associate teaching professor.

“The Iranians have put several other conditions on reopening this [Strait of Hormuz] in addition to the traffic separation scheme that has been put together between Iran and Oman, which may or may not be easy to digest by the White House and other actors,” says Vice Adm. Robert Murrett (Ret.), professor of practice of public administration and international affairs.

Bob Bifulco has joined the dean’s office leadership team and faculty have stepped into new roles guiding the Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs and the Law, Society and Policy program.

“Humans have a lot of failure of imagination. We just can’t imagine that it will happen to us,” says University Professor Emeritus Sean O'Keefe. “All it’s got to do is show up in a major metropolitan area,” he adds.

Robert Murrett told Newsweek that President’s talk of "massive attack" on Iran likely means "a dramatically escalated air campaign." Murrett added, "I don't see any evidence of large deployments of ground forces, or indicators that any kind of significant ground activity would take place." 

Vice Adm. Robert Murrett (Ret.), professor of practice of public administration and international affairs, says he isn't terribly surprised by the long-range drone capabilities that Ukraine has been able to develop based on “the technology that Ukraine has brought to the battle so far and their ability to pivot very quickly and to do both short-range, medium-range and now long-range strikes over the vastness of the Russian land mass.”

“I think we're in a tit-for-tat right now, which it actually represents a new phase of the conflict between the United States and Iran. Certainly, we're on our fifth consecutive day of strikes, which seem to be getting more aggressive on both sides,” says Vice Adm. Robert Murrett (Ret.), professor of practice of public administration and international affairs.

As they prepare to field the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System for 2027, states can secure the important data necessary to guide policy and resource choices related to food security, writes Colleen Heflin, professor of public administration and international affairs.