Professor Nick Peroff Named Public Administrator of the Year

Release Date: May 06, 2009

Peroff

Nicholas C. Peroff, PhD, professor of public administration, was recently named the 2009 Public Administrator of the Year (academic field) by the Board of the Greater Kansas City Chapter of the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA).     

Peroff was selected from nominees across the Greater Kansas City region for his outstanding contributions to public affairs education, particularly in the area of politics and public policy.     

Politics of Administration, a course Peroff has taught for 35 years, was cited by ASPA as particularly valuable in raising students’ awareness about the political realities of a career in public and nonprofit administration.          

“The goal of the class,” Peroff explains, “is to get students to think critically rather than take everything they see in print as truth.” The course focuses on the public policy process, and Peroff says he hopes students take away an appreciation for politics and how hard the majority of policy makers work to do a good job and represent the public.     

“Most students don’t recognize the value of the course until down the road when they find themselves in leadership positions and realize how much government affects work in the public, for-profit or nonprofit sectors,” he says. “I’ve had students come back years later and tell me it was one of the most valuable courses they took while earning their MPA.”    

Peroff will be recognized with the award at the GKC ASPA Annual Awards Dinner on May 20, 2009.