Describe the bureaucratic institutions history. When was it formed? What was its original purpose? Who were the important leaders that helped define this institution?
The topic of essay one will be bureaucratic institutions. As youll find out when you read Chapter Eight of the textbook, the executive branch of the American government has many, many bureaucratic institutions which help it to carry out daily governance. Some of these institutions help organize domestic politics (like the Department of Education), some conduct foreign policy (like the Department of State), and some do so many things that we arent even sure of what their responsibilities are (like the National Security Agency).If you need help choosing a bureaucratic institution, you can peruse the list on this page: http://www.usa.gov/directory/federal/index.shtmlAny institution categorized as part of the executive branch on that page is a valid topic for the essay. Further, if you picked a topic for your essay and cant find it on this list (or the list includes it in a category other than the executive branch), that topic is probably not valid. If youre confused or need help picking a topic, email me or come to my office hours! You will be required to choose one of these bureaucratic institutions and perform the following tasks within a 2-4 page essay:(1) Describe the bureaucratic institutions history. When was it formed? What was its original purpose? Who were the important leaders that helped define this institution?(2) Describe the day-to-day activities of this institution. What are its responsibilities? How does it ensure its tasks are carried out? Have these responsibilities changed since the institution was first created?(3) Critique the institutions more recent actions/decisions (within the past 10 years). Do you agree or disagree with the work it has done? What would you change about its actions? This part of the assignment is worth 80 of the 500 total points that make up your final grade. You will be graded based on:(1) How thorough you were in completing the above three tasks. (20 points per task, for a total of 60/80 points)(2) Grammar and clarity of writing. You do not need to be 100% error free, but if your writing style makes your essay hard to read, you can be penalized up to 20 points. (20/80 points) Your completed essay MUST be uploaded to Blackboard by 11:59 pm on October 23rd. To upload your essay, log into Blackboard, select our course, and click the Essays tab. From there, click the Essay One category. To submit your essay, create a new thread, then either write your essay in the text box or copy and paste it from a different program, like Microsoft Word.
