All But Forgotten: Thomas Jefferson and the Development of Public Administration

Study of Thomas Jefferson's legacy in public administration.

Thomas Jefferson's contributions to the development of administrative thought and practice in the United States have largely been overlooked in American history. His career in public service and his ideas concerning government and constitutional tradition have overshadowed his involvement with public administration. All But Forgotten explores this hidden contribution by investigating Jefferson's two terms as president and the educational history of the University of Virginia, an institution whose early years were influenced by Jefferson's theory and practice of administration. Throughout his later years, Jefferson developed a more comprehensive awareness of the effects of the political process on the administration of government, the theoretical and practical value of preserving constitutional tradition, and the constant need to connect contemporary public policy with the types of republican principles found in the Constitution. The end of Jefferson's career is as important to the historical advancement of administrative theory and practice as the beginning is to political theory and democratic thought.

Stephanie P. Newbold is Assistant Professor of Public Administration at American University.