Life at ASU

The Legends in Phoenix

2009-10-13T01:21:00.000-07:00

For all rock lovers this past Friday (10/09/2009) was a night to remember. Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger from “The Doors” performed live with the Phoenix Philharmonics in Dodge Theater in Phoenix. Brett Scallions, their new singer, was just phenomenal. Well, I guess no one can replace Jim Morisson, but still the concert was an unforgettable experience.

When student's work is being valued...

2009-06-29T11:25:00.000-07:00

There is no greater pleasure than working with professors who value your work. Since I came at ASU, I’ve been fortunate to work for (with) many wonderful professors, who supported me in any possible way. They were the reason why I considered only one PhD Program, the one at the ASU School of Public Affairs.

Working as a research assistant while at the Master program, and later as a research associate as a doctoral student, I was given the opportunity to learn from people who are widely recognized experts in the field. Moreover, due to their dedication for student excellence, I was able to write articles with some of them and see my name as an author of a published piece.

The first article with my name included appeared in January 2009, as part of The Foundations of Public Administration Series, published on the American Society for Public Administration Association (ASPA) web site. I am the third co-author of the Administrative Behavior and Organization, an article written with Dr. Robert Denhardt and my dear colleague Margaretha Warnicke.

Encouraged by another professor, Dr. Afsaneh Nahavandi, I sent a paper (that was written as a class assignment) to our valued school journal Perspectives in PA (PiPA). After it was peer reviewed in a process of a blind review, my paper was published in the same journal.

Dr. Janet Denhardt was the first professor to invite me to work with her on another piece, which for me was an incentive to demonstrate hard work and a great honor at the same time. Two other professors also worked with her (Dr. Edgar Ramirez and Dr. Larry D. Terry, Jr.) and the product of this work has recently been accepted for publication by the International Journal of Public Administration.

The other professors that I had the chance to work with, including Dr. Larry D. Terry, Dr. Barbara McCabe, and Dr. John Hall are true inspiration for me. I feel blessed to (have) work(ed) for all of them because from them, I could only learn what does it mean to be an excellent researcher and professor. They say that I am a great help for their work, but I say that I could only hope to contribute at least a small portion from what they have thought me.

I came to realize that being a doctoral student is challenging because becoming a PhD is not only about classes and grades. It is about doing a research, being passionate in what I am doing and last but not least, being persistent in my work. All the professors that I worked for and all of them that I took classes from trusted my work and by that they fostered my growth as a future academic. I could only hope that I will be able to prove their trust.

Macedonian evergreens

2009-05-21T11:19:00.000-07:00

Having some spare time might be fun, sometimes… I spent some time looking for old songs that I like, and fortunately I found what I was looking for. I am posting few Macedonian evergreens that one could only enjoy.

Slave Dimitrov "Cija si" (Whose you are)

Dragan Mijalkovski "Idi" (Leave)

Hugh Jackman in Tempe

2009-04-28T17:45:00.000-07:00

The premiere for the latest film X-Men Origins: Wolverine was in Tempe. I just learned about the event right before the premiere; probably because I am not watching TV a lot these days. However, I am so happy that I could be there around 7 p.m. last night, right on time. Although I could not actually see Hugh (maybe my camera did, I should check), I could feel the whole premiere atmosphere. The fans were around, some of them waiting whole night. Once Hugh and the movie crew appeared, I could hear the women screaming. As Hugh was moving, I could hear different parts of the crowd screaming and trying to take a better position to see some of the actors at least for a second. It was exciting.

The decision for Tempe to be a city for the World premiere of X-Man, was based on a competition among U.S. cities. I don’t know the criteria upon which this decision was made, but I think Tempe would increase its popularity after this event. Even Hugh Jackman said that he liked the city so much, he wanted to move here. Well, of course, this is a good marketing trick, but still it is flattering to hear that.

Budget cuts in time of economic downturn

2009-01-22T09:45:00.000-08:00

We are all aware for the financial crisis that might well be the biggest in the last 30 or 40 years (if not in the last 90 years). Some of the consequences could immediately be seen only by walking in a mall, where one can find many stores offering sales, and unfortunately, many others that have the sign "closing all stores" or "final sales". While we could find 'good deals' for items that we wanted to buy long time ago, what we also know is that once the stores are closed, people will lose their jobs, and even more frightening, it will be very difficult for those people to find new jobs.

Virtually everyone is affected by this crisis, if not directly, certainly indirectly, by the grim expectations, the fear for their future or the future for their children.

And the future (not just for the individuals, but for a state) is seriously jeopardized when the money for education is severely cut. Budget cuts in education, as we know, mean that education programs are reduced, tuition goes up, and ultimately, the educational services deteriorate to a degree which would reduce the potential for future growth.

As a former budget analyst (not in the U.S., though), I could not resist to write on this topic. I would only try to roughly describe some the reasons and the consequences associated with the budget cuts, which at this point, with limited information on hand, I could perceive.

What usually happens in economic downturns is that budget gets cut. However, when the problem is on the demand side (such as it is now), cutting public expenditures shrinks GDP even more. People are reluctant to spend their money because of the perceived unstable future, and the government cuts its spending because revenues go down. On the other hand, the need for public services in times like this is even more acute. Mandates, that frequently are in absolute amounts or apply for certain population groups take most of the budget share, and other services, such as education are the ones that suffer. Public investment that may 'refresh' the economy are absent, so that the consequences associated with the negative government spending multiplier affect the whole state.

I was recently reading that during the period 1994-2001, AZ together with nine other states, had significantly reduced tax rates (on average for this period and for the 10th states around 16%). Those reductions came during a period of continuous growth and more significantly, those tax cuts were permanent. I would not like to sound critical, especially when I do not know the facts, but the pure logic tells me that tax cuts should not be done on a permanent basis during economic growth. The reason is simple, every (relatively stable) economy follows economic cycle, which includes not just growth, but times like this one as well. This is especially important for AZ because to the best of my knowledge, according to the tax payer protection initiative, the tax rates could increase (in difficult times) with a majority of 2/3 of the AZ residents' votes on referendum. This makes it almost impossible to raise taxes in order to keep public services.

I am not implying that AZ should raise taxes right now, but I am almost certain that it should not cut spending so severely either. What I am saying is that additional $10 per family will not determine the decision of the family to spend or not to spend money, (additional $100 per company may as well have the similar effect) but may well translate in millions of dollars that will contribute to keeping important public functions.

As tax raise is not an alternative, the possible alternative might be other form of collecting public money (as a remedy on short run). This should be transparent, time limited and for programs that are important for the residents of AZ. I do not believe that anyone would object funding public university programs, for example. At the same time, public managers should foster innovation, which would mean designing or redesigning some of the public programs in a way that will reduce the redundancy, but will keep programs that are important.

Certainly, what was written is not at all any sound analysis based on available data and information, but only a reflection based on my experience. However, I do believe it opens room for at least thinking about alternatives which will not be reflected so much in cutting the finances, but more likely in raising money and fostering innovation.

Christmas Lunch with our host family

2008-12-29T14:58:00.000-08:00

This year my husband and I were invited for a traditional Christmas dinner with our (former) host family. This gave us the opportunity to see how American families celebrate Christmas and to have relaxing holiday time. We had a turkey, potatoes, and some other things for the main meal, and delicious homemade pumpkin and apple pies for dessert. After we had the dinner, we played ‘family games’, including a jigsaw puzzle. We had a lot of fun talking and playing. We are so grateful that we could enjoy with our dear friends for Christmas.

Dave and Cathy Puckett were the first people that we met in Arizona. Almost three years ago, they came to the airport and took us in their home. We stayed with them for about three weeks until we found the apartment (with their help). Having a host family was a wonderful experience for my husband and me for many reasons. It was our first time in Arizona and we did not know much about Arizona, the University and many other things. I was lucky to contact a professor (Dr. Heather Campbell), who with the help of a PhD student (Charlene Roach, now an alumn) found Dave and Cathy to help us with everything. We were still in Macedonia, and we knew that a family will take care of us. It was a comforting feeling that we will have a help and we will not have to worry about finding an apartment while we are still in Macedonia.
Once we met Dave and Cathy, they immediately became our friends. They are so nice and we feel blessed to have them as our friends.

Holidays and traditions

2008-12-23T15:21:00.000-08:00

It is Christmas time and people are busy shopping. Malls are full and everyone is trying to ‘catch a holiday deal’. But most importantly, families gather and celebrate.
Although, we the Macedonians do not celebrate Christmas now, I still feel the spirit. We are among the Christians (Orthodox) that celebrate Christmas on January 7th, instead December 25th. Since we are here, our season begins now and ends January 14, when according to our customs and beliefs, the Old New Year comes.
There are so many customs in Macedonia associated with Christmas and Old New Year. Although there are some differences from town to town, some traditions are common to most of the towns.
On the morning before Christmas, children go in houses and sing so called “Kolede” songs. Families give them fruits, cookies, and money (usually small amounts). On the Christmas eve, a special dinner is cooked. Before the dinner begins, the smallest member (usually if there is a child in the family) goes outside and ‘invites’ God to the dinner table. The dinner includes a pita with a coin inside. The oldest member of the family cuts the pita (no use of knife), and gives each member a piece. Every member looks at the piece and the one that finds the coin is believed to bring the happiness in the family for the year to come. If the coin is in the middle, than it is said that the coin is ‘in God’, and he blesses the family for that year.
Old New Year is January 14th, and in addition to New Year’s eve, Macedonians celebrate Old New Year. However, there are somewhat different traditions. On January 13th, many people light fires and gather around the fire. They prepare grill, some drink ‘rakija’ (a very strong alcoholic beverage), and many sing folk songs and play the traditional dance 'oro'. On the Old New Years’ night, some people prefer to gamble, in fact friends would gather in a home and they will play cards.
These are only few most 'practiced' traditions in Macedonia that go along with the holiday spirit.

Breakfast session with Dr. Mark Glaser

2008-10-31T13:08:00.001-07:00

I am involved in a program that is called Preparing Future Faculties (PFF). This is a national program that helps PhD students to learn about the kinds of administrative and other issues that future scholars are facing. The program is excellent in many ways because it prepares future faculties (current students) for the challenges they are going to deal with once they graduate. One of the best activities that students are required to do is organizing a so called “Breakfast session”, where a group of students in the program invite a faculty from other university (not ASU) to talk about his or her experiences related to finding his or her first job and pursuing a career as a faculty.

My group included Robbie Robichau, a fellow student from Public Administration Department and Maryanne Pitcher from Law Department. With the help from Dr. Robert Denhardt (the Director of the School of Public Affairs) we invited Dr. Mark Glaser, a Wichita State University professor to be our guest speaker for the session. Several other students attended the session.

Dr. Glaser has extensive research records in community decision-making and citizen participation. He shared his experiences and gave us many useful tips to consider when we make our decision in which institution we want to work for. He also pointed out that our preferences matter, and what count most are perhaps the relationships we build with the people in our field. Each decision that we make now with regards to our own research and who we contact to do a research or coauthor a paper will lead our future choices. What I took from this session is that as future faculties we’ll have to deal with many challenges but if we know our direction, we could always make things happen. Overall, this was a learning experience for me and I would strongly recommend everyone who is interested in pursuing a career as a faculty to apply for the PFF program. PFF will certainly clarify many of the ‘foggy’ issues in advance.

For the man who became a legend…

2008-10-16T20:48:00.000-07:00

Today I chose to write for a rather unusual theme, about a person whose name is well known in the Balkans.

He was a young and successful singer from Macedonia. When only 26, he “concurred” all former Yugoslav countries and he was about to make his debut on the world scene. His English album was almost ready, and he had his trip to Croatia to record his last 2 songs for the new album. But, a tragic event (car accident) took his life last year on this day. His death was taken with tears, sorrow and deep respect for what he did. Some journalists from Great Britain compared his fame on the Balkans with the fame of Elvis Priestley or John Lenon. But, what he did and what he is respected for was not only his music.

Tose Proeski came from the small town of Krushevo (R. Macedonia) from a poor and religious family. With his voice of an angel, Proeski was meant to become a star. He became very famous and beloved by many not only in our country but in all other countries that could enjoy his music. What was special about him, though, was his character. Although very famous, he was a humanist and just an “ordinary” boy. He never took drugs or alcohol, and he believed that people are good by nature, so that everyone deserves a chance. That is why he had many, many humanitarian concerts that helped the kids from the Balkans. While people knew about his humanitarian concerts, what they learnt after his death was that he was giving his own money to many individuals in need. Many said that he financed surgeries for their kids or simply paid for new clothes of the foster children… His humanitarian deeds made him an Ambassador of good will for the United Nation for the region. In short, his music, his belief in God, and his character made him a role model for the young people.
One year after his death, he is remembered and celebrated. Just 11 days ago, 20 singers from the Balkans (and 1 from Ukraine) had a (humanitarian) concert in Skopje, singing his songs to remember his last concert from October 5, 2007. More than 45,000 visitors and around 30 million TV viewers celebrated him thorough his songs. Many say that he was a living legend while alive and he became a myth after his death.

I genuinely share these deep feelings about the man that I never met but whose music and deeds will always remind me (and I believe many others) that being a good person is what matters in life.

"Aria" (in Italian, with Gianna Nannini)

"Beloved" (Ljubena, in Macedonian, my favorite)

"My Little One" (with his nephew Kristijan, in English)

"The Hardest Thing" (in English)

The Lives of Others (2006)

2008-09-25T15:51:00.000-07:00

Last night I watched a magnificent German movie, "The lives of others". While this movie is an excellent production in many ways, one particular aspect draws my attention. It made me think about the role of the government and the ways in which it may interfere in private lives. In addition, it made me think about the ethics of the "civil servants" whose job was to spy on other people, thus neglecting the basic human rights of the people whose lives were followed.

This movie presents a very disturbing story about a play writer whose life had literally been followed by the secret police (Stasi) during the socialist regime in East Germany. The officer who was assigned to spy on the writer had to listen to all private conversations that took place in the apartment of the play-writer and to follow him wherever he went. He was also assigned to write daily reports on what he was spying during the day. The "goal" was to find any suspicion activity that the writer would have "against" the communist government. Since it was expected that the writer would do something against the government, any report that would not confirm would result in the degradation of the civil servant who followed him.
I would not like to reveal the whole story, though I am tempted to do so. I would strongly recommend (especially to the student of public administration) to watch this movie because it raises many concerns about ethics, human rights, and the impact of the governing system on the lives of the citizens. This movie really presents something that was going on in many communist countries from Eastern Europe, including my own country – Republic of Macedonia.

Many people from Macedonia, after the clash of ex-Yugoslavia, could find secret police files on their name. They were surprised to find that they had been followed and spied for years. Some of these secret files contributed to ruin people's lives leading to suicide or to long-term imprisonment. I just wonder where the ethics of public servants are and ultimately could we find any ethics in the governing system.

The summer is almost over

2008-08-18T15:30:00.000-07:00

This was my first summer in the US without any classes. I had more than 2 months to “recuperate” from all the pressure that I had during the school years (2006 & 2007). Though I enjoy reading and writing (which is basically what is required from me), I found these two months not only refreshing, but necessary as well. Before this period, I felt that I was running out of ideas and energy to do even minor things. That is perhaps why I only read 3 books and I spent the rest of the summer watching movies and spending more time with my friends.
This last week, my husband and I went to Las Vegas (it was our second time to visit Las Vegas). Although we both do not prefer gambling and we did not really gamble, we had so much fun. To me, Las Vegas is what I call “the masterpiece of fakeness”; nothing is real, and every hotel, especially those on the strip, replicates either a city or parts of the world in a way that the tourist knows it is fake, but still enjoys the view and the show. For example, the hotel “Paris” kind of replicates some buildings in Paris, such as the Eiffel Tower and the Triumphal Arc, but while they remind us on the original buildings, they are not even close to the originals. But, yet, while walking in the hotel, the “streets” and the small restaurants inside the hotel make the visitor feel very nice and comfortable. Every hotel offers similar but different shows and entertainment that make the visitor relaxed and welcome. We had wonderful time in Las Vegas, and now I really feel that I am ready for classes. In fact, I am eager to start with the fall semester. While the extended summer holiday was necessary, after more than 2 months vacation, I feel that I need to work again.

I am posting some of my favorite photos from L.V.

The screening exam is over, so what is next?

2008-07-11T13:19:00.000-07:00

Finally, I have the results from the screening exam. I have passed the whole thing. This means that I will have to choose the Program of Study Committee and to continue my PhD studies with their help.

Choosing the Committee early in the process, as many students would confirm, is important because they will help me to register classes that will be relevant to my doctoral dissertation. This ultimately will contribute to taking only those classes that will guide me to successfully complete the requirements for class credit hours. In other words, if I have the idea of what my thesis would be, I will not come to a situation to take many more classes that are not essential and consequently to prolong my studies by being required to take additional classes (later) that will be necessary for the preparation of my doctoral dissertation.

The good thing is that depending on my own interest, I am allowed to take classes not only from the School of Public Affairs, but also from other schools within ASU. So that, if I am interested in public management, for example, I am allowed to register management classes offered by other departments as well (such as from a business school).

However, there are alternatives and it is up to me to make the decision. I have most of the summer to think about my future.

Screening, Screaming exam, or maybe both…

2008-06-10T18:26:00.000-07:00

It’s been a long time since my last post. Just to mention that I was very, very busy, I think is not enough. That is why, in this blog I will talk about a very important part of the doctoral program, which I believe will be useful for the future PhD students of Public Administration at ASU - The Screening exam.

The Screening exam is by now the most important exam that I have taken. All PhD students in the PA program are required to take this exam and a successful pass of the exam is a precondition for them to continue the PhD program.

During the first two semesters, the students have to take 4 required classes: PAF 600 Seminar: Research Design and Methods, PAF 601 Seminar: Policy Analysis and Evaluation, PAF 602 Seminar: Foundations of Public Administration, and PAF 603 Seminar: Organization and Behavior in the Public Sector.

The screening exam has 4 questions, each referring to one of these classes. One of the questions is called “Mandatory” (for PAF 602), and there is no choice for this question (it is only 1). For the three other questions, there are 2 questions per class of which the student chooses 1 to respond. The actual exam takes place usually the first week of June (it was June 7^th this year). The students have 9 hours, a computer (no access to internet) and no books or notes. They cannot leave the fourth floor, but they can bring lunch, snacks and drinks. All they have to do is to answer the questions.

In order to answer the questions, the students should study during the academic year and should read everything that is assigned. This is very important because May (which would be the only month without classes) is not enough if the student needs to read some things for the first time. May is a month for ‘refreshing’ what the student has already learned throughout the year.

If possible, the student should take notes while reading the books and the articles during the semesters. I was taking most on my notes on computer, so that in May I could summarize them in one single document as a study guide. I found this to be very useful, because I had my ‘study guide’ and I also had the books and the articles around me if I could not recall some of the major ideas/theories.

I also made a list (an excel spreadsheet) with all the authors, the years, and the titles of their works with what I called ‘hint phrases’, or some major ideas that I could relate the author with. My list had above 80 authors. So, knowing all these names and their work, once again, cannot be learned in one month.

Group study was also a very important ‘source’ of study to me. Meeting with the ‘cohort’ was really important, because other students could present a very different aspect of the author’s theory, something that I was initially not considering. Also discussing the ideas/theories helped me remembering some things easier.

And the last, but not least, ‘practicing’ was also important. Students are given questions from the previous exams, so that they are not completely ‘surprised’ when they see the question on the actual exam. Though different from the questions that will be on the exam, these questions give the student an idea of how they should approach the exam (the breath and the depth of the knowledge).

I took the exam on the 7^th of June and I do not know whether I will pass the exam (I will receive the results in about one month). However, there are several options. The best one is to pass all four questions. The worst option is not to pass all 4 questions, in which case the student has one more chance to take the exam. The third option is, to pass 2 or 3 to questions and to rewrite 2 or 1 question. The worst case scenario and the options that give the possibility to rewrite 2 or 1 question give a hope to the student that not passing the exam or not passing the whole exam at once is not the end of the road. Despite the options, I do hope for the best scenario.

All I can say, most of the students refer to the screening exam as ‘screaming’ exam. It is a ‘screening’ because it measures whether the student familiarized herself (himself) with the foundation of the field and the basic concepts that should be grasped. It is partially ‘screaming’ because it requires a lot of studying, and a lot of thinking about how to use the knowledge in a proper way. To me, during the preparation phase, it was very important to remember. As I am not so good with remembering names and/or titles, I dedicated a lot of time in finding a way to get all the authors with their works in my head. I guess every student faces different set of challenges and everyone has to find a way how to deal with these challenges. At the end of the day, each and everyone of us should ‘prove’ that she/he has the knowledge necessary for a future academic and researcher.

Democracy, can we define it?

2008-04-24T14:15:00.000-07:00

If we talk about the U.S., I believe many would agree that the U.S. is a democratic country (and I agree with that). And yet, many would argue that it is a Republic, which means, a representative democracy.

The term democracy is used around the world and many reforms supported by the international organizations (especially International Monetary Fund, the World Bank) are intended to promote democracy in the "Third World" and to some degree in post-communist countries. Democracy ultimately is related to government responsibility and responsiveness to its citizens (the concept of 'good governance'), together with respecting principles that include freedom, liberty, property rights, justice, ...

Although political theories have introduced concepts of democracy, I
think that the use of the term democracy, especially by ordinary people is ambiguous rather than clear.

The first question that comes to my mind is whether we can talk about government responsiveness and responsibility only in 'democratic' countries? Having that being said, do we assume that countries that do not declare themselves as democratic exclude any responsibility to their people or deny the basic principles of democracy?

The second question that bothers me is whether we can assume that our representatives (those who we elect on free elections) correctly represent our interests? Do they know our interests?

And, finally, my third question comes from the aspect of public administration, or whether civil servants are representative to the people (since they are not elected). Although some would argue that they only execute the politics determined by the elected officials (which in theory should represent the 'will of the people'), I would argue that civil servants are not value neutral and that they are active creators of public policies.

Lately, I have been reading literature that talks about direct forms of democracy, i.e., democracy where people will participate in defining the public interest, and in creating and implementing public policies. While the ideas are very attractive, there are many
obstacles for including 'the people'. Among the many obstacles, I would only mention few: who will have the authority to decide who to be included, how this inclusion would happen, do 'the people' have the expertise to be included (do they have to have the expertise), will
'the people' be willing to participate…

To me, there are many questions, and not one certain answer. Although I would like to think that democracy is all about the values that should be respected in one society, when it comes to actual implementation of this principle, many questions remain open.

What do you think? What is democracy?

What is so special about the School of Public Affairs?

2008-04-03T13:30:00.000-07:00

Several programs offered by the School of Public Affairs have outstanding reputations. The U.S. News and World Report ranking of schools of public affairs was just released for 2009 and from nearly 300 programs, our program in urban management was ranked sixth and our program in public administration [MPA] was ranked eighth. As someone who has just earned the MPA degree, I am proud to say that the program that I chose is in the top 10 in the U.S. But, is this the only reason worth being proud of? Despite the recognition that the student has graduated from a well ranked program (and excellently ranked school), the benefits for the student, in my opinion go well beyond the rank. Talking from my personal experience, I can say that the program [MPA] was structured in a way that gives the student the knowledge needed to advance his/her career and at the same time gives a theoretical background necessary for a higher degree (PhD). Many professors teach in a way that increase students' understanding in public administration and the methods for research in the field. They support students' interests and give us enough space to conduct research of our choice. The papers we are required to prepare for class purposes often lead to papers that can be published. And this is very important especially if the student is thinking about pursuing a doctorate. If the student is more interested in advancing his or her career, the MPA program also addresses practical problems in the field of public administration. As a student in the MPA program, I had the feeling that I was enjoying the program while I was learning about the field of my own interest.

Bureaucratic organizations – are they still around?

2008-03-27T12:21:00.000-07:00

(I was inspired from a class discussion on bureaucracy, so that I note some of the basic ideas we were discussing during our vigorous conversation. I am not mentioning concrete theories or authors, but just major ideas, and I hope you will find it valuable to contribute to the general discussion on bureaucracy.)

Bureaucracy came as a product of capitalism and the need to effeciently manage large organizations (public and private). However, it seems that the creation of bureaucracy did not really respond appropriately to the needs of these organizations. The product of industrialization came under the critique of many people.

Almost everyone (from academics to ordinary citizens) scorns bureaucracy for myriad reasons. To enumerate only few, bureaucracy is hierarchical, too rigid, centralized, depersonalized, change adverse,…

Some suggest that we are living (or at least it would be ideal to live) in post-bureaucratic period, when organizations are more decentralized, citizen orientated, flexible, less hierarchical (horizontal structure, networks)…

Yet, these views came under critique as well, who say that the problems of bureaucratic legacy have not been overcome.

What do you think? Do we still live in the bureaucratic era or we went beyond?

Spring Break is over

2008-03-17T11:55:00.000-07:00

Spring break to me is the time to 'recharge my batteries', that is, to
take a short trip and relax for at least few days. This time my
husband and I went to San Francisco. In only 3 days, we managed to visit
many places in San Francisco, such as the Fisherman's Wharf, Pier 39,
Civic Plaza, Golden Gate Park, Lombard Street, Chinatown, the Marina
District, and others. Although there is affordable public
transportation, we preferred to walk and enjoy the sightseeing. We
certainly tried the famous cable car, that was an attraction by itself
and lines of people were waiting for more than 30 min. to enter the
car. We also did not miss to take a boat tour that brought us under
the Golden Gate Bridge and around Alcatraz. Overall, this short trip
was amazing, and I felt it re-new my energy to work.

I am posting several photos from more than 400 photos that we took. Enjoy.

Welcome to Life at ASU

2008-03-10T14:53:00.000-07:00

I'm Ljubinka, a first year PhD student at the School of Public Affairs. I come from the Republic of Macedonia, and as a foreign student this is my third year at ASU. I earned my Master in Public Administration degree (at ASU) just last summer, and the choice to apply for the PhD in Public Administration was inevitable for me. I like the program, the professors, the administrative staff that is always there for me, and most of all, I like the academic culture that is highly cooperative.
This blog will be diverse in terms of the themes that I'll discuss. I would appreciate if you can contribute to the conversation with questions and comments on topics that according to you are interesting or fun