Centre for Policy and Program Assessment School of Public Administration Governments, interest groups, and public organizations of all kinds are increasingly required to conduct and respond to public evaluations of their policies and programs and to justify the continuing need and value of their activities. Universities, as independent educational and research centres, have a useful role to play, and a major responsibility to fulfil, in the assessment of public policies and programs. The Centre for Policy and Program Assessment at Carleton University exists to contribute constructively to the education of those involved in the assessment of public expenditure, regulatory and tax policies, and programs, and to increase public understanding of the uses and abuses of such assessments. The Centre is composed of experienced social scientists drawn from several departments, schools, and institutes at Carleton who possess extensive knowledge of, and applied research experience in, numerous public policy fields and program areas at the federal, provincial urban and international levels of government. Short courses are offered to provide basic applied understanding and to encourage further evaluation work in Carleton's regular degree programs in public administration, social work, international affairs, commerce, political science, economics, sociology, and psychology.
Advice is provided to public agencies on the methodologies being considered for utilization.
The Centre conducts and publishes evaluations and assessments of public expenditure, regulatory and tax policies, and programs in How Ottawa Spends , its annual publication and through its Working Papers Series on Canadian public policy.