Homlessness in Orange County

Homlessness in Orange County   Order Description     The Town Hall Meeting is a program that allows students to truly engage in politics while taking required Political Science coursework. Over the course of this semester you will learn the basics about the institutions of American and California government. You will also supplement this knowledge with research on a current public policy topic. The Basics Each student will be assigned to a team of 8 students; you will then receive a group number and choose a topic. The topic should be a current policy issues impacting some level of government in America. Teams will work over the semester in preparation for an in class presentation and a larger Town Hall Meeting on the assigned issues. The topics were chosen to provide students with an opportunity to experience government. Once a topic has been chosen, each group will dive into researching the topic and begin preparing a presentation. Groups should look at several key factors: • What is the policy issue? • Who is impacted? • Who are the major groups involved, the stakeholders, the interested parties? • What are the viewpoints? • What are the solutions? What role does the government play in solving this issue? • What is your recommendation for action? • What are the barriers to given solutions? Each group can divide their work as they see fit but suggested roles for the group members are as follows: • Group Liaisons (2 Person): These persons gather all of the group information keeps the group on track. They communicate to the Professor for the group. These persons are charged with keeping a log of the group’s progress. These people makes sure each research person is doing their part and that they are not overlapping. These people are also charged with ensuring team members are ready to present at the appropriate time. Liaisons coordinate the research and assembling the final work product for submission. The best writers should probably take on this role as they will write all the final summaries for the project. • Creative Coordinators (3 people): These people will be in charge of the final production of the creative work product. • Researchers (3 people): These people do the research, coordinate with other team members to compile research and convey information for the final work product and discussion. Explore all sides of the issue before making a final determination on your opinion for a solution. Division of Work You are all adults, I expect you to divide your work evenly and function as a group and effectively working within the defined roles. With a class of 200 I cannot manage every group individually. Please work together to produce the best possible work product. Each of you will grade your peers when the final presentations are over. With each student being responsible for their fair share of the project, you will be evaluated for this assignment based on my evaluation of your team’s process and your participation in that process; peer evaluation from team members; and the quality of your reports and participation in the final presentation. Specifically, when evaluating I will look at: • Content and accuracy: Does what you presented make sense, is it well researched and is it factually correct? • Presentation: Did the group put effort into this? Is the final packet formatted correctly? Is the writing in the project free from grammar, spelling and punctuation issues? • Creative Project: Is it obvious that significant time, effort and energy went into this presentation? • References: Did the group use a variety of resources? Are they all scholarly and reputable? After a baseline grade for the project has been established I will then adjust based on the peer evaluations. Final Work Product Creative Work Products will be presented in class on the dates listed in the syllabus and at the Town Hall Meeting. We will begin at group one and move through until all groups have gone, if you have an issue presenting on a certain day, let me know early and I will adjust. I expect to spend eight class periods on these presentations. After each class presentation, each team will turn in the final work product, which is a compilation of the research conducted and needs to include the following: • A cover page with all group members names, group number and topic • The creative work product (if electronic, a flash drive, disk or link to the presentation) • A reference page with all sources used (formatted in a scholarly manner, not a list of links) • A one page executive summary of the different points covered in your presentation and a recommendation for action, there is one of these per group. Please note this is the one item I will read in depth on your topic – everything else is presented, take it seriously and make sure it is written professionally. • A one page explanation of how the work was divided within your group and your process for completion • Peer evaluations. In your peer evaluation, each group member will give the liaisons or the Professor a written evaluation of fellow group members. Please include your name and assign each group member a grade and explain why (you cannot just assign low grades – I need a valid reason). This should be done in bullet format and not be more than one page. Please also give me your opinion on the project, what worked, what didn’t and why. Put thought into these evaluations as they can help dictate future curriculum. If you present in class before the final Town Hall Meeting and need to hold on to your creative work product, that is fine, just let me know. *A note on research: since many of these issues are local you are permitted to use local new sources and first-hand experience (attending City Council Meetings) but when conducting research please keep in mind that sources such as Wikipedia and the like are not acceptable. Focus your research on reputable sources and scholarly materials. Topics Each group may choose a topic relevant to politics today. Below is a list of suggested topics. If you are interested in a topic and do not see it here please talk to me and we can determine if its appropriate. • Federal Policy o Foreign Policy: § EU uncertainty and the impact on the US § Russia, China or North Korea relations o Domestic Policy: § The Federal Budget/Deficit § Healthcare Policy § Immigration Policy Reform § Energy Policy • State Policy: o Pension Reform o Education Spending o Drug legalization o Energy Policy o State water sustainability • Local Policy Issues: o Contracting Services (Police, Fire, Etc.) o Police/Community Relations o Local regulation on issues such as Marijuana regulation, Massage Parlors and Group Homes *While most of you have probably heard of the broad federal topics, the local topics may be a little foreign to you. Don’t let that deter you. I have a much more extensive background in local government than I do at any other level of government and would be happy to discuss any of these with you prior to your topic selection. Creative Work Product The Creative Work Product is your way of conveying your research and message about the topic you have selected. You will convey your points and your conclusions through this medium. It is creative because the medium you use is completely up to you. I have had groups do a film, create models, posters, scrapbooks, Prezis, websites, even record a dance to convey their point, the best by far was the song written about plastic bags (I’m not kidding). Use your group talents (and variety of interests and majors) to come up with something good. I would also encourage you to make your creative coordinators your most creative people of the group, it will help in the long run. If you do not know what to do, come and talk to me and we can discuss options. In Cass Presentations When you present in class, you have 15-20 minutes, you will not present this entire time. Aim for about a 10 minute presentation with 5-10 minutes for Q & A. During this time you will present your research and creative work product. Your final work product is due at the end of the presentation. All group members need to be present to get full credit. Conclusion Unless you are fairly politically astute, I do not expect any of you to have a great deal of knowledge of these issues, the point is to have you really explore a policy topic. Go forth and start researching, consult a variety of sources and really try to educate yourself. Feel free to contact me or our GA with any questions you may have (as long as it isn’t already answered here), dive into the project and have fun! We are doing our topic on homelessness in the state of california.