Professor at USD receives accolades for Katrina article

Dwight Vick, assistant professor of political science at The University of South Dakota, will be recognized as the recipient of the Best Article Award for his article in the August 2006 edition of PA Times, "Why FEMA is a Four-Letter Word and How Bamboo Federalism Can Change It."

The Best Article Award is presented at a general awards ceremony during the annual American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) conference. The conference will be held this year in Washington, DC, March 23-27. The awards ceremony is currently scheduled for Monday, March 26 at 4:45 p.m.

The selection committee found Vick's, article to be "an exceptional blend of theory and practice that made it of value and interest to the two communities that PA Times serves, practitioners and academics." The committee went on to say that Vick succeeded in creating an article that, while genuinely worthwhile reading for the general PA Times readership, can also be used effectively as a classroom tool on the subject of intergovernmental relations."

Vick said he feels honored to receive the award. "I am humbled and elated to receive this award from my peers in public administration. To the best of my knowledge, I am the first USD professor to receive this national award. Even our infamous Dr. W.O. Farber, who co-founded the organization, did not receive this honor. When I learned of this fact, I was more humbled and awestruck than I was when I learned of the award," said Vick.

Vick chose the subject matter of the article because he's always been interested in how governments work (and don't work) together. "I grew up in Mississippi, Tennessee and Louisiana so the area is near and dear to me," said Vick. He plans to attend the awards ceremony in Washington, DC.

For more information please contact Dwight Vick at dvick@usd.edu or Antoinette Samuel, ASPA executive director, at 202-393-7878 or by email at tsamuel@aspanet.org.