The Journal of Public Affairs Education (JPAE) is dedicated to advancing teaching and learning in public affairs broadly defined, which includes the fields of policy analysis, public administration, public management, and public policy. JPAE pursues its mission by publishing high-quality theory, empirical research, and commentary. The core values of JPAE are rigor, relevance, clarity, accessibility, and methodological diversity.

Articles: JPAE welcomes contributions from all public affairs educators who seek to reflect on their professional practice and to engage JPAE readers in an exploration of what or how to teach. JPAE articles are intended to influence experienced educator-specialists but also to be comprehensible and interesting to a broad audience of public affairs teachers. Articles appropriate for publication in JPAE include comprehensive literature reviews and meta-analyses, carefully constructed position papers, critical assessments of what we teach and how we teach it, thoughtful essays about commonly shared teaching challenges, experimental and quasi-experimental assessments of students’ learning, evaluations of new curricula or curriculum trends, national and international/comparative disciplinary and pedagogical developments, and field studies of particular teaching methods.

In addition to articles, the editors welcome proposals for symposia. Proposals that are accepted will be announced in the journal and will be accompanied by a call for papers. Submissions for symposia will be considered through the normal review process. 

Decisions about the publication of all articles are based on the recommendation of members of the editorial board using a blind review process. Substantive content, writing style, and length are all relevant to a decision to publish a manuscript. Depending on the type of manuscript, the review process takes into account the following criteria:

• Research-based: adequacy of theoretical grounding; reliability and validity of findings; significance of the topic; significance of the findings.

• Interpretive, reflective, critical, theoretical: significance of the topic; quality of the argument; quality of the supporting evidence.

• Creative pedagogy: creativity of the approach; soundness of the explanation; evidence of effectiveness; utility for faculty.

• Case studies: pedagogical value; scope of potential use; clear teaching purposes.

• In all cases, writing quality is an important consideration.

Manuscripts that are obviously inappropriate or insufficiently developed will be returned without formal review. Interested authors can better understand the journal’s audience and its expectations for content, quality, and focus by examining what JPAE has published in recent years or by contacting members of the editorial board or staff. 

Manuscripts submitted should not have been published and should not be under consideration elsewhere. Papers presented at a professional conference qualify for consideration; in fact, the submission of manuscripts that have been thoroughly revised following presentation at a professional meeting is encouraged. 

In general, authors are strongly encouraged to have their work reviewed and evaluated by colleagues prior to submission for formal review in order to facilitate the editorial process.

Manuscripts should be sent to jpae@uncp.edu. Only electronic submissions sent to this email address as Microsoft Word attachments will be considered. Any accompanying message should be addressed simply to “Editors,” not to a particular editor.

In order for manuscripts to be reviewed as quickly as possible, authors are asked to observe the following requirements:

• Ensure that the manuscript is anonymous by leaving off your name and putting self-identifying references in a separate Microsoft Word file and as a separate attachment.

• Use margins of one and one-half (1-1/2) inches at the left, right, top, and bottom of the page. 

• JPAE uses the in-text parenthetical reference system with all references at the end of the text in alphabetical order. Notes are to be kept to a minimum. See the Chicago Manual of Style for guidance.

It is important that you identify the type of manuscript you are submitting: (1) research based; (2) interpretive, reflective, critical, or theoretical essay or position paper; (3) creative pedagogy; or (4) teaching case study.

Creative Pedagogy: The purpose of Creative Pedagogy is to feature innovative approaches to teaching specific public affairs subjects or concepts. The goal of this feature is to present experimental exercises, simulations, role plays, or other creative teaching technologies in a format that colleagues can readily use. Submissions are peer reviewed.

Contributions to Creative Pedagogy must include substantive details (e.g., text for the case, role descriptions for a role play exercise) and a narrative discussion about how the pedagogy is used, student response to it, suggestions for instructors who may wish to use it, and results associated with its use. The presentation of the pedagogy should be thorough and lively so that teachers reading the article will be stimulated and able to use the information. 
Submissions for Creative Pedagogy should be sent to Editors, JPAE, at jpae@uncp.edu, as indicated above.

Review Essays: Reviews will commonly use a cluster format in which several books, videos, software programs, cases, CD-ROMs, Internet sites, or other instructional materials will be compared and contrasted in an essay. Review essays should offer a point of view but should seek to treat each item in the cluster fairly. Essays could be structured around a comparison of related resources, resources related to the public affairs education enterprise, or resources that directly or indirectly have something to say about public affairs education. Review essays should strive for clarity, brevity, and timeliness. Inquires about review essays should be sent to Nicholas Giannastasio, Managing Editor, at jpae@uncp.edu.

Copyright Notice: Manuscripts will not be published unless a copyright transfer agreement has been signed by all the authors of a manuscript and has been received by JPAE. Copyright transfer forms are sent out by the NASPAA office. Educators may reproduce any material for classroom use only and authors may reproduce their articles without written permission. Written permission is required to reproduce JPAE in all other instances. 

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