The goals of valuing social equity and using it as a guide in managing public programs arefirmly rooted in the Minnowbrook tradition. Although civil rights activists have long fought for equality, attendees at the Minnowbrook I conference in 1968 were among the first in thefield of public administration to directly confront societal inequities by asserting that publicadministrators should, in addition to valuing efficiency and effectiveness, stress the valuesocial equity in the management and distribution of public services. The field’s emphasis onsocial equity continued on through Minnowbrook II and was identified as a key concernduring the most recent Minnowbrook III conference. After briefly summarizing discussion onthis topic during Minnowbrook III, this article provides an agenda for advancing the field’scommitment to social equity. This agenda centers upon clarifying the conceptual para-meters of social equity, transforming the place of social equity in academic instruction, andbuilding upon existing themes and methodologies in social equity research. Last, predictionsfor the role of social equity at a future Minnowbrook IV conference are presented for further consideration.
Advancing Social Equity in the Minnowbrook Tradition
The goals of valuing social equity and using it as a guide in managing public programs arefirmly rooted in the Minnowbrook tradition. Although civil rights activists have long fought for equality, attendees at the Minnowbrook I conference in 1968 were among the first in thefield of public administration to directly confront societal inequities by asserting that publicadministrators should, in addition to valuing efficiency and effectiveness, stress the valuesocial equity in the management and distribution of public services. The field’s emphasis onsocial equity continued on through Minnowbrook II and was identified as a key concernduring the most recent Minnowbrook III conference. After briefly summarizing discussion onthis topic during Minnowbrook III, this article provides an agenda for advancing the field’scommitment to social equity. This agenda centers upon clarifying the conceptual para-meters of social equity, transforming the place of social equity in academic instruction, andbuilding upon existing themes and methodologies in social equity research. Last, predictionsfor the role of social equity at a future Minnowbrook IV conference are presented for further consideration.