The faculty, students and staff in NIU’s public administration department have reason to be happy.

The department was ranked No. 3 in the country for its city management and urban policy program by U.S. News and World Report in the magazine’s recent ranking of the best U.S. graduate schools.

When the magazine started the ranking three years ago, NIU’s program was ranked No. 4. Its improved placement beats out the programs at Harvard University, Syracuse University and University of Southern California. The University of Kansas is ranked No. 1, and Cleveland State University No. 2.

Professor Don Menzel, director of NIU’s public administration department, said the ranking will make a difference in the number and quality of students recruited to NIU.

“This ranking really benefits the faculty and students to maintain a high level of quality in the program, and also the alumni who show increased pride in the program,” Menzel said.

The public administration department is run in coordination with the political science department within the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. A masters in public administration is a two- to four-year graduate program.

NIU public administration professor Gerald Gabris said public administration can be defined as “implementing public policy.” Elected officials work to create and delegate public policy, whereas public administrators carry out that policy.

“A lot of jobs sometimes get overlooked on the local level and our program has helped put professionalism into local government,” Gabris said.

Gabris, who has been with NIU for 15 years and teaches local government management, said the program has worked to take politics out of government and to fight corruption, like the recent scandal in the Illinois Secretary of State’s office, in which truck drivers were given illegally issued licenses.

NIU’s program also has worked with Chicago-area local governments, placing graduates in city management careers in cities such as Geneva, St. Charles, Naperville, Hoffman Estates, Rockford and even DeKalb.

Jack Schlieper, a public administration graduate student and 29-year veteran of the public sector, came to NIU after seeing the 1998 ranking NIU received from U.S. News in city management and urban policy.

“What brought me to NIU was the caliber of the faculty and their high level of knowledge, commitment and energy,” Schlieper said.

Schlieper, who previously served as a Texas police chief, has been in the public administration program for two years and hopes to either get back into public management or pursue teaching or consulting upon completing his degree.

Menzel and Gabris agree that the demand for public administrators will continue to grow.

“Many local governments are moving from a mayor form of government to a council manager form, creating a need for public administrators,” Menzel said.

He added that salaries for public administrators remain very high, in six-digit figures.

U.S. News assembled its rankings by selecting 259 institutions to rate the university programs nationwide. Other NIU programs fared well in the U.S. News rankings, including the public finance and budgeting program, which was ranked No. 13 in the country, and also the public affairs program, ranked No. 41.

“I have been in the field for several years and personally what has impressed me is the faculty at NIU, this program is head and shoulders above many other programs around the country,” Schlieper said.