The Chicago School That Never Was

6 Pages·0.1 MB·English

by  Heaney M.

The Chicago School That Never Was
Michael T. Heaney, University of Florida
Acentral problem in the development form useable by political actors ~Gunnell his future career path. Low exemplified
of political science has long been 2006, 479!. the ability of a scholar to move seam-
how to emulate the objectivity and rigor CharlesMerriam,whoservedaschair- lessly between the academic and political
of natural science while simultaneously manoftheUniversityofChicagoPolitical realms and helped stimulate Merriam’s
retaining relevance for conducting public ScienceDepartmentfrom1923to1940, belief that participation in politics is a
affairs. For some observers, however, the believedthatthescience-practicedivide prerequisite to being a scholar of politics.
very notion of a natural-scientific orien- couldbereconciledbystructuringuniver- The Columbia faculty Merriam studied
tation to the study of politics is antitheti- sitiestointerfacedirectlywiththepublic under—especially JohnW. Burgess—
cal to its relevance to practical politics. sector.WhenMerriamspokeofbuildinga reinforced his belief that a science of
WoodrowWilson ~1911, 10! struck at the “school,”hisintentionswerenotmerely politics could serve practical and demo-
heart of the matter when he proclaimed topostulateanabstractsystemofthought cratic goals ~cf. Burgess 1898; 1908!.
that “I do not like the term political sci- ortoassembleaninvisiblecollegeofcol- This perspective was typical of
ence” in his 1910APSAPresidentialAd- leagues.Rather,Merriamwasthinkingof nineteenth-century political science
dress. “Human relationships ... are not bricksandmortar,alongwithaconcomi- ~Ross 1991!. In keeping with this view,
in any proper sense the subject matter of tantadministrativereorganizationofthe it was not long after Merriam graduated
science.They are the stuff of insight and socialsciencesandprofessionalschoolsto and joined the faculty at Chicago in
sympathy and spiritual comprehension” advanceascienceofpolitics.Tothisend, 1900 that he immersed himself in city
~10–1; see also Ubertaccio and Cook Merriamspentsevenyearsofhischair- politics.
2006!. manship~1925–1931!pushingforthe Merriam regularly participated in the
In contrast toWilson’s perspective, creationofanofficial“SchoolofPolitics” events of the City Club of Chicago—
the members of the Chicago School of oran“InstituteofGovernment”atChi- founded in 1903 as nonpartisan forum
Political Science—which arose at the cago,whichmighthavelookedsomething for public issues—which afforded him
University of Chicago in the 1920s and likeamoderndayschoolofpublicpolicy. entrée into city politics and introduced
1930s—envisioned the model of natural Merriam’sproposalwasneveradopted,at him to many of those ~within and beyond
science as integral to a political science leastnottothefullextentthathehaden- Chicago! who would figure centrally in
for practical use ~Almond 2004; Heaney visionedit. his career ~Karl 1974, 52–3!. He was a
and Hansen 2006; Karl 1974; Monroe The methodological innovations of the frequent speaker at the club, addressing
2004; Neblo 2004; Ross 1991; Simon Chicago School spread widely through- topics such as the “Municipal Revenue
1985; Somit andTanenhaus 1967;Tsou out political science and became the System of Chicago” ~on January 6, 1906!
1951;White 1942!.The faculty of the backbone of the behavioral revolution and the “City Charter” ~on June 14,
Chicago School—most notably Charles that would sweep the discipline in the 1907; City Club of Chicago, 1903–
E. Merriam, Leonard D.White, Harold F. 1950s and 1960s ~Dryzek 2006, 489–90!. 1909!. In 1906, he was commissioned by
Gosnell, and Harold D. Lasswell—were Merriam’s model of political science re- the club to report on the city’s revenue
among the first political scientists to con- search as the linchpin of the relationship situation ~Merriam 1906!.This report,
duct randomized field experiments, to between political scientists and govern- along with his short book on Primary
employ advanced statistical techniques ment officials, however, failed to diffuse Elections ~1908!, earned Merriam the
such as multivariate regression and factor as broadly or as successfully. I argue that esteem of progressive reformers in the
analysis, and to combine qualitative the failure to establish a School of Poli- city.These affiliations facilitated his ap-
methods ~like ethnography and content tics helps to explain the limited long- pointment to the drafting committee of
analysis! with statistical methods ~e.g., term success of Merriam’s ambition to the Chicago Charter Convention ~Mer-
Gosnell 1927; Lasswell 1927;White create a political science for practical riam 1907! and then his election ~and
1929!.They relied on these advances to use.The deficit of this disconnect is still reelection! to the city council as alder-
make seminal contributions to the study felt today.This article tells the story of man from 1909 to 1917. In 1911, he
of elections, public opinion, propaganda, the Chicago School that never was by secured the Republican nomination for
political psychology, political parties, exploring Merriam’s motivations for pro- mayor, but was narrowly defeated in the
urban politics,African-American politics, posing it, the unfolding of the proposal, general election by Carter Harrison ~Karl
public administration, comparative poli- and the implications of its aborted life. 1974, 61–83!. His narrow defeat ~in a
tics, and the causes of war.An un- year that trended Democrat!, gained Mer-
resolved question for the Chicago riam national attention and helped to
School, however, was how political sci- Political Science for earn him a position as a power broker
ence as a discipline could regularly within Illinois politics. HowardTaft,
Practical Use
translate these scientific results into a Theodore Roosevelt,WoodrowWilson,
Shortly after Merriam commenced and Robert M. LaFollette regularly
graduate studies at Columbia in 1896, courted his support throughout the
the university’s president, Seth Low, ran 1910s.
Michael T. Heaney is assistant professor
for mayor of NewYork City ~Karl 1974, The spirit of the Progressive Era that
of political science at the University of Flor-
26!. Like many of his fellow students, surrounded Merriam called for new ways
ida. He is spending the 2007–2008 aca-
demic year as an APSA Congressional Merriam joined the campaign on Low’s to use science to solve social problems.
Fellow on Capital Hill. behalf, which would ultimately inspire Non-university-based research institutes
PSOnline www.apsanet.org DOI: 10.1017/S1049096507071193 753
began to emerge with the objective of in Chicago” ~ibid., 351! and to recom- of war, and modes of international orga-
bringing scientific wisdom to bear on mend a sweeping set of reforms to the nization. Rather that forming a school
public policy debates.The Russell Sage police force. For Merriam, this work un- exclusively to tackle city administration
Foundation, for example, was founded in derscored how academics could bring or international diplomacy, Merriam was
1907 with the objective of improving the science to bear on solving public prob- keen on emphasizing that its work must
“social and living conditions in the lems through consultation. transcend the concerns of any single
United States ofAmerica” ~Hammack With the loss of his aldermanic seat in level of government since “the funda-
andWheeler 1994, ix!. Under the leader- 1917 and his inability to resecure the mental problems of government are not
ship of scholars such as MaryVan Republican nomination for mayor in primarily geographical in character, but
Kleeck, Russell Sage quickly established 1915 or 1919, Merriam redirected his are problems of human nature underlying
a thriving program of social science re- attention toward the University of Chi- various forms of political organization”
search investigating child hygiene, recre- cago, political science, and social science ~ibid., 6!.
ation, and industrial relations ~Hammack more broadly.Among other endeavors, Second, the school would not investi-
andWheeler 1994!.Along similar lines, Merriam sought to make the application gate public problems merely in the ab-
the Institute for Government Research of scientific knowledge in government stract, but in consultation with leading
~which later became the Brookings Insti- more than just a personal crusade but, actors in government and civil society.A
tution! was founded in 1916 as a center also, a vital role for the academy ~Mer- role of the school would be to transform
for nonpartisan expertise on issues such riam 1921; 1925a; 1926b!. Merriam be- the sporadic consultation that already
as government budgeting and public per- came a leader in a growing movement existed into more regularized, institution-
sonnel management ~Critchlow 1985!. that aspired to institutionalize this pro- alized relationships. “An effectively
With most of these institutes concen- gressive agenda within the academy and staffed school of politics,” Merriam be-
trated in the East, there was a great government.Within a decade, this lieved, “would command the respect of
unmet need for social scientific expertise agenda began to materialize in the fund- governing officials, and in time would
to address the problems of the burgeon- ing programs of the Rockefeller Founda- become a center of conferences and con-
ing Middle West. tion and the Spelman Fund, the creation sultation between officials and research
After 10 years of active involvement of the Social Science Research Council, men” ~ibid., 2–3!. Strengthening the
in Chicago politics and government, and the convocation of the National Con- bonds between academics and public
Merriam began to advocate a more sys- ferences on the Science of Politics servants was necessary to ensure that
tematic role for political science—and ~Fisher 1993!.The open question for scientific analyses would be trusted in
social science more generally—in the Merriam was, exactly how would these government and employed in cases
practice of local government. He credited ideas be given material life at the Uni- where they could provide the most
the progress of “social politics” in the versity of Chicago? benefit.
United States—including minimum wage Third, the school would directly edu-
laws, public health standards, and work- cate high school teachers, political scien-
place safety laws—to “the advance of The Campaign for a School tists, and public administrators to replace
science, whether in the form of public the existing “hap-hazard system of train-
of Politics
sanitation or of social science” ~Merriam ing” with the proper knowledge of the
1913, 685!. In the area of crime preven- “Science and politics seem to be ex- purposes and methods of science in gov-
tion, for example, he foresaw great value treme opposites,” Merriam complained, ernment ~ibid., 3!.These newly trained
in having academics guide the conduct such that “in order to overcome this ob- individuals would promote scientific
of governmental statistical research. In session so disastrous to present social government directly through their in-
reporting on the investigation by the Chi- organization, it is necessary to take the volvement in the polity and indirectly by
cago Council Committee on Crime ~of most drastic and impressive measures helping to enhance the system of civic
which he was a member!, he noted: that are available” ~Merriam c1924, 5!. education in the United States, one of
“There had never been in Chicago any He believed that a solution to this prob- Merriam’s long-standing passions ~Mer-
attempt at a stock taking, in which the lem was to establish a school which riam 1931b; 1934a!.These efforts would
statistics furnished by the various depart- “would have a dramatic quality in that it ensure that the school gave birth to a
ments and agencies dealing with the would emphasize the scientific aspects of new generation of scientifically- and
problem of crime, were brought together politics, and express with the utmost civically-minded citizens.
and examined with a view of determin- clearnesstheideaoftherelationshipbe- Merriam had grand plans. In his first
ing how far the crime problem was being tweenscienceandgovernment”~ibid.,4!. detailed proposal ~1925b!, circulated in
adequately met” ~Merriam 1915, 346!. Merriam first articulated his vision for January 1925, Merriam advocated a
Merriam believed that academic in- the School of Politics in a 1924 memo- major reorganization of the university to
volvement could correct these deficits.A randum which specified a threefold mis- accommodate the school. He envisioned
statistical study undertaken by the com- sion. First and foremost, it would lead bringing the Department of Political Sci-
mission allowed for the identification of the way in undertaking “fundamental ence and allied social science depart-
broad patterns in the Chicago criminal research in the field of political rela- ments, along with the School of
justice system, such as the facts that the tions” ~ibid., 1!.This research would be Commerce andAdministration and the
majority of all offenders were under 13 interdisciplinary in nature and would Law School, under the administrative
years of age, the majority of those ar- take advantage of “fundamental changes umbrella of the school. Non-degree-
rested and tried were petty offenders, and in methods of studying politics through granting institutions affiliated with the
that 80% of all imprisonment was due to the fusion of the new scientific methods university, like the Harris Foundation
nonpayment of fines ~ibid., 347!.This and results with the older forms of politi- and the Local Community Research
analysis helped contribute to the com- cal inquiry” ~ibid., 3!. It would be di- Committee, were included too.The
mission’s conclusion that “the present rected at the most pressing problems of school would sponsor public lectures, a
policy organization and methods are in- government, such as those dealing with Journal of Government, a library, and
adequate to deal with the crime situation elections, taxation, policing, the causes outreach to interested individuals and
754 PS October 2007
institutions through associate member- nization ... on the basis of actual accom- such medicine and law. In Hutchins’
ships. It would host a council of 30-plus plishment in political research” ~ibid., view, public administration did not have
civic agencies in Chicago and Illinois, 10!. Siting the school in Chicago would its own intellectual content and, there-
such as the Bureau of Public Efficiency, capitalize on the city’s central location fore, training in this field ought to be
the City Club of Chicago, and the Illi- within the United States and its complex conducted outside of the university
nois League ofWomen Voters. urban problems. Merriam saw the need ~Hutchins 1936, 56!.The School of Poli-
Merriam was optimistic about the for the School of Politics as all the more tics thus fell victim to the clash between
prospects for his scheme and had reason urgent due to the widespread social dis- two great educational reformers—
to believe that he would obtain the content of the Great Depression, espe- Merriam and Hutchins—in their battle to
needed institutional support from the cially the “wide lack of confidence in the remake the University of Chicago, and
university. In a letter to LeonardWhite, integrity of public officials” and the higher education more generally.
his lieutenant in the Department of Polit- “wide lack of professional competence” The failure to marry graduate educa-
ical Science, Merriam reported that: ~Merriam 1931a, 1!.To make the pro- tion with policy analysis was not unique
posal more palatable, Merriam withdrew to the University of Chicago.The found-
YouwillbeinterestedtoknowthatI
the reorganizational component of his ing in 1924 of the Robert S. Brookings
havetalkedwithPresident@Max#Mason
idea and specified a minimum initial op- Graduate School inWashington, D.C.
theotherdayandthatheisinfavorof
erating budget of only $122,000 ~down was similar to Merriam’s effort at Chi-
goingaheadatoncewiththedrivefor
from an earlier amount of $4 million!. cago in that both programs sought to
theschoolofpolitics.Hethinksthereis
President Hutchins agreed to meet create synergy between training public
nothingtobelostandmuchtobegained Merriam in September 1931 to discuss administrators and improving public ad-
bytakingstepsintheverynearfuture. the School of Politics ~Servi 1931!.The ministration.The major difference was
~Merriam1926a! formal outcome of the meeting was to that Brookings brought graduate educa-
White responded quickly in an ebullient refer the proposal to the Committee on tion to an existing research center,
manner uncharacteristic of his typical Equipment and Instruction, where it died whereas Merriam sought to build a new
correspondence: shortly thereafter. Merriam subsequently research center around an existing gradu-
dropped the proposal from his Annual ate program.The experiment at Brook-
Idonotintendtocontinuetobombard
Report and never publicly advocated for ings was short-lived, however. Robert
youwithlettersattherateatwhichyou it again. Brookings was concerned that the school
havebeenreceivingthemrecently,butI Exactly what transpired in the meeting had become too focused on the granting
cannotrefrainfromexpressingmyen- between Merriam and Hutchins, and in of Ph.D.s to the neglect of providing
thusiasmattheresultsofyourinterview the committee’s deliberations, remains a nonpartisan policy advice to government.
withPresidentMason. mystery.Yet Hutchins made his objec- At Brookings’behest, the graduate
Icannothelpbutfeelthatthenext tions to Merriam’s proposal quite plain a school ceased to exist in 1927. Its pro-
monthsaregoingtobeproductiveofa few years later in The Higher Learning grams were largely eliminated, with only
greatevent;allofthestarsseemtobe in America ~Hutchins 1936!. Writing a few advanced graduate students con-
movingintheircourseinthatdirection. shortly after the publication of Merriam’s tinuing to study at the newly created
Itcertainlywillbeatremendous Political Power ~1934b!, Hutchins Brookings Institution ~Critchlow 1985,
achievementifthevariousthreadswhich bemoaned: 80!.The imperatives of policy-relevant
youhavebeensocarefullyweavingdur- research and graduate education thus
Powerbecomesthegreatwordinpoliti- proved to be exceptionally difficult to
ingthelastfewyearscanbebrought
calscience;andthepredictionofwhat balance.At a leading policy institute,
togetherandestablishedonapermanent
thecourtswilldotakestheplaceofjus- graduate education was viewed a distrac-
foundation.Needlesstosay,Ishallbe
ticeastheobjectofthelawyerandthe tion from providing advice; within a
[email protected].,
legalscholar.Thescientificspiritleads leading university, policy training was
Merriam#movesinthegame,andshall
ustoaccumulatevastmassesofdata viewed as counter to the proper ends of
proceedwestwardwithhighhopesfor
aboutcrime,poverty,andunemploy- education.
thefuture.~White1926!
ment,politicalcorruption,taxation,and
Much to Merriam’s chagrin, the requi- theLeagueofNationsinourquestfor Beyond the School of Politics
site support was never forthcoming from whatisknownassocialcontrol.Asub-
President Mason, who resigned to accept stantialpartofwhatwecallthesocial Although the School of Politics failed
the presidency of the Rockefeller Foun- sciencesislargechunksofdata,un- to materialize, Merriam and his col-
dation in June 1928.The arrival of a new leagues continued to work within the
digested,unrelated,andmeaningless.
president in 1929, Robert Maynard Department of Political Science toward
~Hutchins1936,101!
Hutchins, would create a new set of ob- the goal of a political science for practi-
stacles for Merriam’s proposal. Hutchins’ This passage summarizes Hutchins’cri- cal use.Above their responsibilities for
educational humanism and focus on gen- tique of Merriam’s science of politics, teaching and research, for example, most
eral education clashed with Merriam’s which he thought distracted the univer- of the department’s faculty formally
scientism and practical aspirations. None- sity from its fundamental intellectual served in consultative and advisory ca-
theless, Merriam promoted the school in ends ~Ashmore 1989, 155–6!. pacities to government agencies and
his Annual Report, though it failed to Hutchins argued that the goal of uni- civic associations.As the department
garner much attention again for two versities ought to be general education frequently emphasized: “One of the func-
years. toward the cultivation of good intellec- tions of the Political Science Department
Merriam made his case for the School tual habits, not vocational training for is to act in a consulting capacity for re-
of Politics with renewed vigor in 1931 particular professions ~Hutchins 1936!. sponsible governing officials, unofficial
~Annual Report 1931!. He boasted that He believed that universities ought to citizens, and civic agencies.This is an
the school would exude “the symbolic provide professional education only in obligation sometimes interfering with
value of a dignified and impressive orga- fields with their own intellectual content, research and sometimes aiding it, but in
PSOnline www.apsanet.org 755
year of the 1930s as there are represent-
Table1
ing the entire political science profession
Membership by Chicago Political Science Faculty on Federal today.1
Boards, 1930–1939 The department proactively fostered
opportunities for consultation by encour-
Faculty Member Board, Committee, or Commission aging national associations to locate their
offices on the University of Chicago’s
Louis Brownlow National Resources Committee
campus. In 1929, Merriam was able to
President Roosevelt’s Committee on Administrative Management
entice the International City Managers’
Charles Merriam National Planning Board
Association and the Bureau of Public
National Resources Committee
PersonnelAdministration to set up shop
National Resources Planning Board
on campus.Asteady flow of new organi-
President Hoover’s Commission on Recent Social Trends
zations arrived each year. Merriam, with
President Roosevelt’s Committee on Administrative Management
the collaboration of his close confidants,
Marshall Dimock Department of Labor Commission on Immigration Proceedings Beardsley Ruml and Louis Brownlow,
was able to secure of gift of $1,160,000
Floyd Reeves Advisory Committee of the WPA Education Program
from the Spelman Fund of NewYork to
American Youth Commission
construct a home for these organizations
President Roosevelt’s Advisory Commission on Education
at 1313 East 60th Street ~Annual Report
White House Conference on Children in a Democracy
1938, 8; Bulmer 1980!. Securing this
Harold Gosnell Central Statistical Board grant was a notable achievement during
Works Progress Administration a period of fiscal austerity, especially
August Vollmer National Crime Commission considering that it was the only new
National Law Observance and Enforcement Committee building constructed on the Chicago
National Safety Council campus between 1932 and 1948 ~Univer-
sity of Chicago Library 2006!.At the
Leonard White Committee on Civil Service Improvement
time of its opening in 1938, the “1313
Committee on Professional and Scientific Personnel
building” ~or the “PublicAdministration
Joint Congressional Committee on the Investigation of the TVA
Building”! housed 17 national and inter-
United States Civil Service Commission
national organizations, which are listed
Quincy Wright Foreign Bondholders Protective Council inTable 2.
The relationship between the inhabit-
Source: Annual Report 1930–1939.
ants of 1313 and the Department of Po-
Note: Excludes memberships with private foundations, civic associations, and state litical Science was bidirectional and
and local governments. Excludes consultancies or reports that do not involve productive. In 1938 alone, seven execu-
membership. tives from the PublicAdministrative
any event one from which we cannot
escape and which we do not desire to Table2
avoid” ~Annual Report 1930, 10!. Occupants of the 1313 Building in 1938
During the 1930s alone, eight of the
department’s faculty members served on Organization Executive Director
20 distinct commissions, boards, or com-
Public Administration Clearing House Louis Brownlow
mittees of the federal government, as
American Legislators Association Frank Bane
reported inTable 1.White, for example,
American Municipal Association Clifford W. Ham
was a member of the United States Civil
American Public Welfare Association Fred K. Hoebler
Service Commission and Merriam was a
American Public Works Association Frank K. Herring
member of the Natural Resources Plan-
American Society of Planning Officials Walter H. Blucher
ning Board.This count does not include
Civil Service Assembly G. Lyle Belsley
the many positions of responsibility de-
Council of State Governments Henry W. Toll/Frank Banea
partmental members held in national
Federation of Tax Administrators Albert Lepawsky
associations ~such as the National Mu-
Governmental Research Association Robert M. Paige
nicipal League! or requests for studies
International Association of Chiefs of Police William P. Rutledge
to be conducted on behalf of federal
International City Managers’Association Clarence E. Ridley
agencies ~such as the Office of Indian
Municipal Finance Officers’Association Carl H. Chatters
Affairs!.To put these numbers in per-
National Association of Assessing Officers Albert W. Noonan
spective, in 2006 theAmerican Political
National Association of Housing Officials Coleman Woodbury
ScienceAssociation was aware of only
National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers,
four political science faculty members
and Treasurers Carl H. Chatters
who were currently serving on national
Public Administration Service Donald C. Stone
commissions, boards, or committees
~Brintnall 2006!.Thus, there were as Source: Annual Report 1938, 8.
many ~or more! Chicago faculty mem- aBane assumed the position upon Toll’s retirement that year.
bers serving in this capacity during each
756 PS October 2007
Building enjoyed the status of lecturers founding vision.Today the building’s practical relevance. However, the funda-
in the department, including Louis principal occupant is the Chapin Hall mental lesson taught by the Chicago
Browlow,Albert Lepawsky, HenryToll, Center for Children, for which it is School that never was is that universities
Lyle Belsley, Cark Chatters, Clifford chiefly known. possess tremendous power to foster work
Ham, and Herbert Emmerich ~Browlow’s that matters to the public sector. For a
deputy and eventual successor at the time, the University of Chicago Depart-
What was Lost with the
PublicAdministration Clearing House!, ment of Political Science was a vital
School of Politics?
enabling them to teach courses like resource for federal, state, and city agen-
“Techniques in MunicipalAdministra- The story of the Chicago School that cies. Enabled by a supportive department
tion” and “Studies in Municipal Mea- never was deepens our understanding of chair and university environment, faculty
surement” ~Annual Report 1938, 9!. the historical tension in political science members and graduate students in the
DuringWorldWar II, the close relation- between a discipline based on a model of department found substantial common
ship between the department and 1313 natural science and a discipline that as- ground between their research agendas
served as a platform for faculty to assist pires for public relevance. Charles Mer- and the contemporary problems of
is war planning, at least for the few fac- riam worked to resolve this tension, in government.
ulty members who did not take leave to part, by establishing institutions that Merriam’s call for a political science
work directly for the federal government. would formalize the interaction between for practical use was by no means
The establishment of the PublicAd- academics and public officials.While his unique in the history of the discipline.
ministration Building did create an efforts did succeed to some extent, espe- It was present in the aspirations of
institutional presence for numerous asso- cially as manifested through the erection nineteenth-century political scientists, the
ciations that extended beyond Merriam’s of the PublicAdministration Building in initiators of the behavioral revolution,
retirement in 1940. By 1963, 22 associa- 1938, his most ambitious proposal to and the post-behavioral response ~Easton
tions called 1313 their home ~Thomas establish a formal School of Politics was 1969!. Today, many within the discipline
2004!.Yet with no formal institutional never realized.Without a permanent in- are sounding renewed calls for rele-
connection between the department and stitutional connection to the research and vance, with the most visible responses
the associations—as well as the new teaching of the university, the relation- including the founding of a new journal,
agendas of post-World-War-II faculty ships between 1313 and the academic Perspectives on Politics, and the report
~such as Leo Strauss, Hans Morgenthau, community at Chicago gradually dis- of the APSA’s Task Force on Inequality
and David Easton!—collaboration and solved after Merriam’s retirement.While and American Democracy ~2004!. These
consultation began to fade.An era of such consultation is not nonexistent steps appear to be in the right direction.
“issue networks” in the 1970s lured today, neither is it widely fostered by Yet a more complete embrace of the call
many of these associations toWashing- departments, universities, nor the disci- for practical relevance would demand
ton, D.C. ~Heclo 1978!. By the time the pline.This element of Merriam’s vision reconfiguring institutions to recognize
1313 building was renamed the Charles for a science of politics appears largely and reward more fully those scholars
E. Merriam Center for PublicAdminis- to have been lost. that strengthen the bridge between
tration in 1979, its occupants’missions Individual political scientists no doubt political science and the practice of
had drifted considerably from Merriam’s could do more to infuse their work with government.
Notes
*Thisresearchreceivedfinancialsupport Bloom,JohnMarkHansen,DanielMeyer,and levelwhomdidnotinformtheAmericanPoliti-
fromtheInstitutionforSocialandPolicyStudies StephenYoder. calScienceAssociationoftheirappointments.In
atYaleUniversityandthedepartmentofpoliti- 1. Ileaveopenthepossibilitythattheremay anycase,Ithinkthatthegeneralpointthatcon-
calscienceattheUniversityofFlorida.For beadditionalpoliticalsciencefacultymembers sultationisnolongeraswidelypracticedstill
helpfulsuggestions,IamgratefultoMichael servinginaconsultativecapacityatthenational holds.
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