Western Carolina University M.P.A. Director Roger Hartley Named Dean of University of Baltimore's College of Public Affairs
January 8, 2015
Contact: University Relations
Phone: 410.837.5739
Roger E. Hartley, director of the Master of Public Affairs Program and professor of political science and public affairs in Western Carolina University's Department of Political Science and Public Affairs, has been named dean of the University of Baltimore’s College of Public Affairs. Hartley will join UB on July 1.
"I am deeply honored to have the opportunity to serve the University of Baltimore and the College of Public Affairs," Hartley said. "The University of Baltimore invested in the promise of public service when it formed the College of Public Affairs and committed it to training leaders capable of solving today’s multi-disciplinary public challenges. I couldn't be more excited to work with the College's tremendous students, faculty, staff and alumni to fulfill its mission of advancing public service and social justice, grow its programs and support its high-quality teaching and research."
"We believe Roger Hartley is a rising star in his field and he will be a great addition to the UB and USM community," said UB President Kurt L. Schmoke. "He comes to us highly and enthusiastically recommended by our committee, which conducted a national search to fill the dean’s position."
Encompassing the School of Criminal Justice, the School of Health and Human Services and the School of Public and International Affairs, the University of Baltimore's College of Public Affairs provides personalized teaching and innovative research that furthers excellence and professionalism in the public and nonprofit sectors. The College serves as an intellectual catalyst for local, regional, national and global leadership for a diverse student population pursuing careers in public administration, international affairs, conflict management and negotiation, health and human services, and criminal justice. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs, plus continuing education, research and engaged practice.
Beginning in 2010, Hartley served as the primary administrator and policy leader for the M.P.A. in the Department of Political Science and Public Affairs at Western Carolina University. While there, he managed student recruitment, curriculum scheduling, the cultivation of alumni support, program marketing, accreditation, and so on. He also taught in the master's program and in the undergraduate side.
In 2012, Hartley received the graduate school's "Graddy" award for best program director. He led the program to its first-ever seven-year accreditation by the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration, which included a 2014 letter of commendation as part of the agency's site visitation. He led efforts that increased the size of the program’s student body, their grades and test scores, and also strengthened its fundraising capacity. An M.P.A. Advisory Board, consisting of alumni and external constituents, was established by Hartley during his tenure.
Prior to that, Hartley served as interim director of the School of Public Administration and Policy and associate dean of the Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona from 2008 to 2009. He also co-directed the Law, Criminal Justice, and Security Program, an interdisciplinary program between Arizona's Rogers College of Law and the School of Public Administration and Policy, directed that institution's Rombach Institute in the School of Government and Public Policy from 2009 to 2010, and served as a professor in various positions at the University of Arizona beginning in 2003.
Hartley's teaching and research positions prior to Western Carolina University and the University of Arizona include an assistant professorship at Roanoke College's Department of Public Affairs, adjunct professor in the CUNY-John Jay College of Criminal Justice, adjunct professor in the CUNY-Baruch College Department of Political Science, and a number of others.
Among his many awards and accolades, Hartley received the 2014 "First Year Advocate" award from Western Carolina University, in recognition of his faculty work toward the success of new students.
Hartley earned a doctorate in political science from the University of Georgia at Athens in 1999, an M.A. in political science at the same institution in 1993, and a B.S. in public affairs from Indiana University in 1991.
Hartley has published dozens of articles, reports, conference papers and review articles throughout his career on law and court systems, including the 2002 book Alternative Dispute Resolution in Civil Justice Systems.
He recently finished a three-year term as a member of the Executive Council of the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration.
The University of Baltimore is a member of the University System of Maryland and comprises the College of Public Affairs, the Merrick School of Business, the UB School of Law and the Yale Gordon College of Arts and Sciences.