The KU Public Management Center

KU Public Management Center

Welcome!

The KU Public Management Center is the professional development arm of KU's School of Public Affairs and Administration. Our programs prepare leaders, develop professionalism in the public workforce, and link KU resources to the challenges of public management. We have offices in Topeka and at the KU Edwards Campus in Overland Park and we provide training throughout the state of Kansas. Translating theory into practice, we are deeply dedicated to the proposition that public service lies at the heart of a healthy democracy.

Join Us:

Master of Public Administration (MPA) Info Session
 Topeka: Thursday, May 17

Making Your Life Work: Organizing and Balancing Work and Home
 Topeka: June 14

The Heart of True Leadership: Supervisory Training for the Public Workforce
 Topeka: June 19-21
Overland Park: September 18-20

Our Programs

We have graduated over 1,200 Certified Public Managers from all across the state. CPM students are sent by their sponsoring agencies and spend 2 days per month for a calendar year with a curriculum based in managing work, leading people and developing self. Participants’ capstone projects offer a valuable tool to their agencies, often resulting in process improvements and cost savings.

Our Emerging Leaders Academy provides a unique development opportunity for promising non-managerial staff. Designed to help agencies with succession planning, ELA offers participants an opportunity to learn from established public servants while developing a portfolio to help them identify and reach their professional goals.

The PMC was established in 1974 to bring KU's Master in Public Administration to Topeka. Over 400 scholars have earned their MPA degree with us and many now hold key leadership roles for the State of Kansas, local governments, and nonprofit organizations. Our highly motivated, mid-career students bring an array of professional experiences that enrich our classes.

We also offer a host of custom courses tailored to agency needs or provided in an open enrollment format. These include Supervisory Training, Customer Service, Ethics, Difficult Conversations, Harassment in the Workplace and many others.


The University of Kansas prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, ancestry, disability, status as a veteran, sexual orientation, marital status, parental status, gender identity, gender expression and genetic information in the University’s programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies: Director of the Office of Institutional Opportunity and Access, IOA@ku.edu, 1246 W. Campus Road, Room 153A, Lawrence, KS, 66045, (785)864-6414, 711 TTY.