Creation of the Sanford School of Public Policy
Executive Summary
The provost on March 2, 2005, charged a 20-person task force with considering "whether the moment is right, under appropriate conditions, to move toward the creation of a school of public policy." The Task Force, at its final meeting on August 29, 2005, unanimously endorsed a 117-page report that recommended initiating the process of creating a school of public policy. Among the report's findings was the judgment that the University's goal of "advancing our ability to put our knowledge at the service of society" could be best met by authorizing the creation of a school. The Department of Public Policy Studies in the Sanford Institute on September 5, 2005, unanimously endorsed the Task Force recommendation, noting that Terry Sanford's original goal in establishing the institute was to bridge the gap between the academy and the real world,
to sponsor more policy-related research in the university, to improve the quality of decision-making in society, to educate people for public service and to make a difference in the world.
Following a year of discussions under the aegis of the provost, agreements were reached on how to implement the task force's recommendations. The Academic Council (AC), on May 11, unanimously endorsed the Provost's recommendation to go ahead (it being understood that the AC wanted the University to bring the issue back to the council before it gave its final approval), and the Academic Affairs Committee of the Board of Trustees unanimously endorsed the same recommendation on the following day. The Sanford Institute is confidently proceeding with the early stages of a $65 million endowment initiative, with an initial target of $40 million by June 30, 2009. Assuming that it reaches this target, it will return to the Academic Council and the Academic Committee of the Board of Trustees for formal endorsement of its desire to become a school.
The new School of Public Policy will serve as a concentrated home of interdisciplinary expertise, teaching, and research and will spearhead efforts to engage local, national, and international issues. It will provide synergies among Duke's many schools, act as a conduit for the university's interest in policy engagement, and serve as a portal for a number of university initiatives that seek to apply knowledge to real-world problems, to bridge the gap between the academy and the real world. The ambitions outlined in the task force report and subsequent planning find exact parallels in Duke's strategic plan.
How the New School of Public Policy Plan Complements Duke University's Strategic Plan
Goal 1: Increase the Capacity of Our Faculty to Develop and Communicate Disciplinary and Interdisciplinary Knowledge: With a major increase in the size of its faculty--from 21 current tenure-track faculty to 42--Sanford's intellectual mission will be profoundly enhanced and its engagement mission fundamentally expanded. Sanford's brand identity is innovation at fusing disciplines and addressing complex policy questions, paired with active engagement in real-world policy issues, from the local level to the international level. Public policy scholars at Duke are deeply grounded in traditional research disciplines, yet focus their research on policy issues that cross disciplinary lines. New hires will add depth and breadth in areas in which the Sanford Institute excels and allow the new School of Public Policy to act entrepreneurially when opportunities arise, to build expertise in new areas, and to establish synergies with other schools at Duke in their efforts to put knowledge at the service of society.
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