Faculty – Dr. Trenton J. Davis
Trenton J. Davis
Department Chair and MPA Program Director
Professor of Public Administration
Research and Teaching Interests: Public Administration, Human Resource Management, Organization Development and Behavior, Local Government Management, Leadership.
Professor Davis received his Ph.D. in Political Science (with fields in Public Administration and American Government-Public Law) from Northern Illinois University in May 2007. He also holds a Master of Public Administration (M.P.A.) and Bachelor of Science in Public Administration from Missouri State University. His research primarily focuses on organizational change, small group behavior, public service motivation, compensation practices, innovation management, and leadership within public organizations. Professor Davis has works appearing in the Review of Public Personnel Administration, Journal of Public Affairs Education, State and Local Government Review, Nonprofit Management and Leadership, The Social Science Journal, and Human Resource Management: Problems and Prospects (5th and 6th editions). He joined the faculty at Georgia Southern University in August 2007 and has served as the MPA program director since January 2009. He is also the founding director of the Institute for Public and Nonprofit Studies (now the Department of Public and Nonprofit Studies).
Selected Publications:
Revisiting the Information Technology Skills Gap in Masters of Public Administration Programs (with P. Cary Christian). 2016. Journal of Public Affairs Education, 22(2): 161-174.
Of Politics, Self-Preservation, and Symbolism: An Investigation of Jurisdiction-Stripping and Legislative Redistricting (with Brett Curry). 2014. The Social Science Journal, 51: 398-407.
Understanding the Compensation of Executive Directors: Examining the Influence of Performance, Region, and Organizational Characteristics (with Nathan J. Grasse and Douglas M. Ihrke). 2014. Nonprofit Management and Leadership, 24(3), 377-398.
Gender Disparity in Professional City Management: Making the Case for Enhancing Leadership Curriculum (with LeAnn Beaty). 2012. Journal of Public Affairs Education, 18(4): 617-632.
What Makes Municipal Councils Effective? An Empirical Analysis of How Council Members Perceive Their Group Interactions and Processes (with Gerald T. Gabris and Kimberly Nelson). 2011. State and Local Government Review, 43(3): 196-204.
Demand Versus Supply: Assessing the Capacity of MPA Programs to Satisfy the Growing Need for Professional Management in Local Government? (with Gerald T. Gabris and Kimberly Nelson). 2010. Journal of Public Affairs Education 16(3): 379-399.
Strategic Compensation: Utilizing Efficiency Wages in the Public Sector to Achieve Desirable Organizational Outcomes (with Gerald T. Gabris). 2008. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 28(4): 327-348.
Last updated: 12/19/2023
