New Directions in Politics and Public Policy

A non-traditional graduate program for working professionals seeking to lead and make an impact in local government or community-based organizations.

Housed within the CU Denver Political Science Department, the New Directions program offers an applied Master's Degree in Political Science, as well as graduate or undergraduate level certificates for those seeking to enhance their skills, with or without a degree. New Directions provides real-world education in two closely related sectors that work together to shape local communities:

• Local Public Leadership, including public policy and local government administration.  
• Non-profit Community or Labor Leadership, including non-profit management and community-based or labor organizing.

New Directions balances a foundational curriculum that develops students' skills and abilities with cutting-edge courses on emerging trends in the field, such as the following topics coming in 2025: 

 Local Government & Affordable Housing: the most pressing issue facing communities in Colorado, this course will offer an introduction to the history and basics of affordable housing specific to the local level, best practices to approach the issue comprehensively and insight into the political dynamics encountered in these conversations. 

 Organizational Management & Workers: as collective bargaining is on the rise among public sector and non-profit employees, best practices for collective bargaining and leveraging labor-management partnerships to improve outcomes and solve challenges from the organizational leader's perspective. 

 Social Economy: creative and innovative strategies for achieving economic growth with social equity, such as worker owned coops.

All of our programs and courses develop our students' political acumen, enabling them to be effective leaders and preparing them to advance equity in their communities.

What Makes New Directions Unique?

• Weekend Intensive and Online Courses.  Most courses in the program are offered in an intensive weekend format, allowing completion of a class in just three separate weekends of work (the remainder are in the evenings). Classes are offered in several different formats: in-person, exclusively online or sometimes a mix of both in-person and online within the same course. Where a class is offered in-person, students may contact the instructor regarding remote participation options for students located outside the Denver Metro area. These class formats provide our students substantial flexibility, many of whom work full-time or have other personal and family obligations.
• Political Context. Policy and government don't operate within vacuums. Both needs and outcomes are influenced by political forces, historic inequalities and democratic practices that operate in a given community. New Directions provides students critical insight into these forces to better prepare for a future in the field. 
• Practical, Professional-Development Curriculum.  Lecturers are drawn from current experts working in the fields of local government and/or community leadership. In addition to traditional coursework, students have the opportunity to earn credit for internships and independent study partnerships with local non-profits, labor unions, or government agencies. Final master's projects can be designed in consultation with these same community partners so as to have real-world relevance and impact.
• The Cathy Shipley Best and Brightest Fellowship Program.  This competitive, two-year fellowship program places masters students from qualified programs like New Directions with local government jurisdictions in small and rural jurisdictions across Colorado. The program may place fellows into existing roles such as assistant town manager, or in new positions like a town sustainability officer. The 2024 Fellowship package paid fellows approximately $42,000 a year, a raise is expected in 2025. The annual timeline is to apply by March 1 for a July 1 start date. 
• New Student Scholarships.  New Directions is proud to offer several scholarships that may help defray some of the costs of attending for qualifying students. 
• Alumni Network. The Center for New Directions has a long record of educating graduate students who have moved on to leadership positions across Colorado, serving as elected government leaders, town managers, university officials, non-profit directors, and public policy researchers and advocates across the state. This alumni network is a resource that has proven beneficial to many of our graduates seeking opportunities both during and after graduate school.