Call for Proposals

The Center for Public and Nonprofit Management (CPNM) at the University of Central Florida’s School of Public Administration will host its 16^th annual Public Administration Research Conference (PARC). The fully virtual conference will take place over two days and offer a day of professional workshops and a day of research proposal presentations and academic panel discussions. Day one, March 24, 2022, will offer workshops for researchers and practitioners, and the day two panels will be on March 25, 2022.

The conference theme, “Promoting broadened prosperity, social equity, community resilience, and inclusive governance through policy reform and public service from local to global initiatives” concentrates on the need to engage and support both traditional and multidisciplinary research projects, build new or reinforce impactful partnerships, and engage practitioners and leaders across the public sector.

In an effort to overcome the vulnerabilities and challenges faced by communities and leaders around the world -both those that were readily apparent and underlying, lurking just below the surface, and were exacerbated by this global pandemic. Governments, institutions, nonprofits and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and leaders must plan a way forward that addresses the public policies, administrative procedures, and infrastructure shortfalls laid bare by the pandemic. They must do so while managing and mitigating the effects of a continually evolving pandemic environment that is still being shaped by increasingly complex and compounding problems and the introduction of new opportunities or innovations.

Researchers, practitioners, and leaders have both experienced and uncovered contexts that can inform a deliberate way ahead that engenders a global recovery that empowers local communities, refocuses and shapes priorities to ensure that preexisting challenges are not inadvertently reinforced during the rebound, and new standards for preparedness and resilience are embedded into the solutions being crafted. This year's conference offers an opportunity to present research, showcase practitioner field experiences, and hear from leaders working to protect public safety and security, ensure governance and stability, pursue sustainability and resilience, and preserve community and society.  To this end, the 16th annual PARC conference will virtually bring together students, academics, and practitioners to steward conversations, facilitate information sharing, and build or reinforce collaborative partnerships and knowledge networks that will enable public sector adaptations, innovations, or solutions that are pragmatically informed and action-oriented.

Join us to present your research, share an insightful context, or inspire and support the next hard steps that propel global society, reinvigorate noble public purpose, and the lift local institutions that keep our communities. Proposals may be research papers, case studies, best practices, etc. that address this conference theme in a wide range of public administration and policy domains, including, but not limited to: human and social services, nonprofit management, budgeting and financial management, emergency management, and planning and economic development.

The deadline for proposal submissions is January 2, 2022. Please submit your proposal(s) using this ONLINE FORM from your computer or smartphone. We request full contact information, an abstract (not to exceed 500 words), proposal title, and author(s). If you have logistical questions related to the conference, contact the CPNM Assistant Director, Mr. Justin Miller, at Justin.Miller@ucf.edu. If you have questions about the conference theme and/or proposal submission, contact the conference committee chair and CPNM Director, Dr. Maritza Concha, at Maritza.Concha@ucf.edu. 

Conference Registration will open December 6, 2021. Please be sure to monitor your email for links on how to register for the conference. 

Conference Schedule
Thursday, March 24^th (afternoon and early evening)

• Virtual Pre-Conference Workshops
• Virtual Preconference Student Seminar
• Virtual Welcome and Networking Reception

Friday, March 25^th

• Virtual Welcome and Logistics
• Virtual Concurrent Panel Sessions (before and after the lunch hour)
• Virtual Keynote Speaker Address (during the lunch hour)