American Political Science Association

• www.apsanet.org

With more than 13,500 members residing in over 70 countries worldwide, the American Political Science Association is the world's largest professional organization for the study of politics. As will become increasingly clear to you as you become familiar with APSA's extraordinary range of programs and services for individuals, departments, and institutions, the Association brings together political scientists from all fields of inquiry, regions, and occupational endeavors in order to expand our awareness and understanding of political life.

American Society for Public Administration

• www.aspanet.org

The American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) was established in 1939 in response to major changes in the developing field of public administration. In its 60+ years, ASPA has both influenced and been influenced by the field and profession of public administration, in three areas specifically:

• Professionalism in public administration - both domestically and internationally
• Public administration education, theory and research
• Advocacy for public administration and public service

ASPA's roots are in the progressive reform movement that produced major changes in American public administration in the early part of the 20th century. Darrell Pugh, in his excellent history of ASPA and public administration entitled Looking Back, Moving Forward, outlines three major developments that formed the backdrop for the creation of ASPA:

• "the emergence of self-conscious practices in public administration brought about during the progressive era through the work . . . principally [of] those associated with the municipal research bureau movement";
• "the establishment of a national network of public administration organizations in Chicago through the Public Administration Clearing House [PACH] in the 1930s"; and
• "the manifestation of deep concern for the improvement of the management and organization of the
  federal government precipitated by its burgeoning growth during the 'New Deal' period . . ."

Concern about management and organization of the federal government resulted in President Franklin Roosevelt's Committee on Administrative Management (better known as the Brownlow Committee after its Chairman), and the subsequent passage of the Reorganization Act of 1939. Both "generated a series of events that ultimately led to the creation of ASPA."