The Course Project is an opportunity for you to explore, in-depth, a topic of your choosing related to intergovernmental management. Accordingly, a first step in that direction is for you to choose an appropriate topic and submit a proposal in Week 2. The proposal can be as brief as two or three paragraphs but should be detailed enough to reflect a strong start to the project by you. In that regard, please be sure to explain how you expect that your research and analysis will relate to one or more specific COs for this course. A list of potential topics is presented below. These are intended as very broad areas; you will need to narrow the topic and refine the analysis so that the intergovernmental aspects are appropriately considered.

The following guidelines are pertinent to the paper for the project.

• Papers must be 8-12 pages in length with 10-point font and double-spaced. Include a cover page, table of contents, introduction, body of the report, summary or conclusion, and a reference page for the works cited. Note that the length is for the content only; the cover page, table of contents, and reference page are in addition to those pages.
• Even though this is not a scientific-type writing assignment, and is mostly creative in nature, references are still very important. At least six authoritative, outside references are required. Anonymous authors or web pages are not acceptable as references. These should be listed on the last page titled References.
• Appropriate citations are required.
• The paper should be in the American Psychological Association (APA) format.
• All DeVry University policies are in effect, including the plagiarism policy.
• Papers are due during Week 7 of this course.
• Any questions about this paper may be discussed in the Course Q & A Forum.
• This paper is worth 200 total points and will be graded on quality of research topic; quality of paper information; and the use of citations, grammar, and sentence structure.

You will need to meet the following milestones for deliverables during the next few weeks:

• Week 2 – Topic Selection (This includes a 2-3 paragraph proposal in a Word document to be submitted.)
• Week 5 – Status Report (A 2-3 paragraph summary of your work to date in a Word document is to be submitted. The main emphasis is to provide you with a chance to explain if you are having questions or problems.)
• Week 7 – Final Submission (See the Guidelines above regarding this deliverable.)

It is again emphasized that the topic selected should be related to a specific intergovernmental management issue or need. Some of the topics listed below already have the intergovernmental aspect included. Others are broader topics. For instance, ethics is listed as a possible topic, but a person would need to refine the topic so that it relates more specifically to one or more of the COs. Also, this list is not meant to be all-inclusive. With those caveats in mind, please consider the following as possible topics:

• Ethics
• Interstate compacts
• Uniform state laws
• Compact Clause of the United States Constitution
• Immigration laws and enforcement (including the concept of preemption)
• Mutual aid agreements
• Emergency Management Assistance Compact
• Grants system
• Medical marijuana: the interplay of federal and state laws
• FEMA and state emergency agencies
• No Child Left Behind Act
• Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010
• Medicaid and resulting state programs
• Mandates: funded and/or unfunded
• Planning and financing of the highway system
• Planning and financing of air transport facilities, such as an airport

The following are best practices in preparing this paper.

• Cover page: Include who you prepared the paper for, who prepared it, and the date.
• Table of contents: List the main ideas and sections of the paper and the pages where they are located. Illustrations should be included separately.
• Introduction: Use a header on your paper. This will indicate you are introducing your paper. The purposes of an introduction or opening include:
  1. to introduce the subject and highlight why the subject is important;
  2. to review the main ideas and the order in which they will be covered; and
  3. to establish a tone of the document.
• Body of the report: Use a header with the name of the project. An example is, “The Development of Hotel X: A World Class Resort.” Proceed to break out the main ideas: State the main ideas, the major points of each idea, and provide evidence. Show some type of division, such as separate, labeled sections; separate groups of paragraphs; or headers. Include the information you found during your research and investigation.
• Summary and conclusion: Summarizing is similar to paraphrasing, but it presents the gist of the material in fewer words than the original. An effective summary identifies the main ideas and the major support points from the body of the report; minor details are left out. Summarize the benefits of the ideas and how they effect the subject.
• Work cited: Use the citation format specified in the Syllabus.

Additional hints on preparing the best possible project follow.

1. Apply a three-step process to writing: plan, write, and complete.
2. Prepare an outline of the research paper before going forward.
3. Complete a first draft, and then go back to edit, evaluate, and make any changes required.
4. Use visual communication to further clarify and support the written part of the report. Examples include graphs, diagrams, photographs, flowcharts, maps, drawings, animation, video clips, pictograms, tables, and Gantt charts.

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