About

The Northeast Conference on Public Administration, Inc. (NECoPA) was founded in October 2010 at the School of Public Affairs and Administration (SPAA) at Rutgers University – Newark. As an organization, NECoPA provides support for universities in the northeast region as they work to plan and host the annual NECoPA conference. This event, the annual regional conference of the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA), is intended to provide educational opportunities for scholars (faculty and students), practitioners (administrators and policymakers), and others interested in public service in a collaborative environment by educating the general public and members of the organization on current issues, research, and practice in public and nonprofit organizations.

The primary NECoPA region encompasses ASPA Districts 1 and 2. This region covers 16 states and the District of Columbia, which includes 19 local ASPA Chapters and 57 higher education institutions with NASPAA accredited programs.

Past conferences have featured more than 100 presentations of academic papers, workshops, and discussion of best practices, and have been attended by several hundred participants from the Northeast region, across the United States, and from a number of foreign countries. Past NECoPA conference locations include:

SUNY Albany (2021) – virtual conference
Suffolk University (2020) – virtual conference
Long Island University Brooklyn (2019)
University of Baltimore (2018)
University of Vermont (2017)
Penn State Harrisburg (2016)
George Mason University (2015)
University of New Hampshire (2014)
University of Delaware (2013)
University of Massachusetts-Boston (2012)
John Jay College-CUNY (2011)
Rutgers University-Newark (2010)

Rutgers SPAA serves as the official secretariat for NECoPA, playing an integral part in the development of this important regional organization which is dedicated to furthering the education of public administration practitioners and academics.