First State Insights – Details, episodes & analysis

Filip Hrůza speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about the thirteen-year partnership between their institutions, the adaptation of the "Delaware Model" of public service education (https://www.udel.edu/academics/colleges/biden-school/) to the Czech context, and the creation of "MuniLab" to engage students with practice. They also discuss the unique characteristics of Brno and the South Moravian region and the vital role universities play as a bridge between academic research and public administration practice. Filip Hrůza is the Director of the Institute for Public Administration and a member of the Department of Public Economics at the Faculty of Economics and Administration at Masaryk University in Brno, Czech Republic (https://www.econ.muni.cz/en). He focuses on connecting academic theory with public sector practice through initiatives like organizing conferences on inter-municipal cooperation and MuniLab, which engages students with public administration practitioners. He has worked for over a decade to adapt the University of Delaware's Legislative Fellows program and other public service models to strengthen local governance and public administration education in the Czech Republic. This episode was recorded on November 24, 2025, for First State Insights, a podcast presented by the Institute for Public Administration (IPA). For more First State Insights episodes, visit https://soundcloud.com/first-state-insights or search for "First State Insights" wherever you listen to podcasts. IPA is a research and public service center within the University of Delaware's Biden School of Public Policy & Administration. For more on IPA, visit https://www.bidenschool.udel.edu/ipa. Opening and closing music: "I Dunno" by Grapes, used under Creative Commons 3.0 License.

Professors Calin Hintea and Maria Aristigueta speak with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about challenges facing democracy in Central and Eastern Europe and the United States, the importance and evolution of relationships among countries in this region and the U.S., and potential roles for engaged universities and public administration programs to strengthen these relationships while bolstering democracy. Professor Hintea is the Dean of the College of Political, Administrative, and Communication Sciences at Babes Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca, Romania (https://www.ubbcluj.ro/en/facultati/stiinte_politice_administrative_si_ale_comunicarii). He teaches strategy and management courses and has extensive experience working with public and private organizations on strategy development topics. He is the chair of the Accreditation Committee of the European Association for Public Administration Accreditation, senior editor of the Transylvanian Review of Administrative Sciences, and former president of The Network of Institutes and Schools of Public Administration in Central and Eastern Europe (https://www.nispa.org/). Maria Aristigueta, Emerita, was the Founding Dean of the Joseph R. Biden, Jr. School of Public Policy and Administration and Charles P. Messick Chair of Public Administration at the University of Delaware. She was a Fulbright Scholar at Babes-Bolyai University in Cluj, Romania and at the University of Salerno, Italy. She is a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA) and a past-president of the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA), and a past-member of the Executive Council of Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA). To learn more about the interplay of universities, communities, and democracy, review articles from a 2024 special issue of the Transylvanian Review of Administrative Sciences (https://doi.org/10.24193/tras.SI2024). This episode was recorded on February 26, 2025, for First State Insights, a podcast presented by the Institute for Public Administration (IPA). For more First State Insights episodes, visit https://soundcloud.com/first-state-insights or search for "First State Insights" wherever you listen to podcasts. IPA is a research and public service center within the University of Delaware's Biden School of Public Policy & Administration. For more on IPA, visit https://www.bidenschool.udel.edu/ipa. Opening and closing music: "I Dunno" by Grapes, used under Creative Commons 3.0 License.

Archie Campbell, Mayor of the City of Milford, Delaware, speaks with Julia O’Hanlon, policy scientist at the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration, about the challenges and opportunities that led to his Delaware residency, a public service calling, and plans to retire in Milford. This interview covers Mayor Campbell’s personal and professional background and his perspectives on Milford’s changing population. This episode was recorded on May 12, 2023, for First State Insights, a podcast presented by the Institute for Public Administration (IPA). For more First State Insights episodes, visit https://soundcloud.com/first-state-insights or search for "First State Insights" wherever you listen to podcasts. IPA is a research and public service center within the University of Delaware's Biden School of Public Policy & Administration. For more on IPA, visit https://www.bidenschool.udel.edu/ipa. Opening and closing music: "I Dunno" by Grapes, used under Creative Commons 3.0 License.

Damian DeStefano, Director of the State of Delaware's Division of Small Business, talks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration, about programs and approaches being put in place to support Delaware's small businesses through COVID-19 disruptions. This interview was recorded on March 26, 2020. For the most up-to-date information on small business support in Delaware during the COVID-19 crisis, visit business.delaware.gov/coronavirus. For more information on the Institute for Public Administration, visit www.bidenschool.udel.edu/ipa.

Andy Molanes, founder and CEO of Argentek, LLC, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director of the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration (IPA), about his journey as an entrepreneur, including the challenges and rewards of operating an export business, the small business support services Argentek has benefited from, and the positive impacts Andy and Argentek have made and hope to make in Delaware. Founded in 2010, Argentek is a consumer electronics wholesaler that exports from its base in Wilmington, Delaware, to over 70 countries worldwide. In May 2023, the U.S. Small Business Administration recognized Argentek as Delaware’s Exporter of the Year. To learn more about Andy and Argentek, visit https://argentek.org/. This episode was recorded on May 26, 2023, as a special #FreightFriday edition of First State Insights made possible by the Delmarva Freight Working Group—an ongoing transportation planning and economic development partnership coordinated by IPA, the Delaware Department of Transportation, and Delaware's three Metropolitan Planning Organizations: the Dover/Kent County MPO, the Salisbury/Wicomico MPO, and WILMAPCO. To learn more about the Delmarva Freight Working Group, visit http://www.wilmapco.org/goodsmovement/. For more First State Insights episodes, visit https://soundcloud.com/first-state-insights or search for "First State Insights" wherever you listen to podcasts. IPA is a research and public service center within the University of Delaware's Biden School of Public Policy & Administration. For more on IPA, visit https://www.bidenschool.udel.edu/ipa. Opening and closing music: "I Dunno" by Grapes, used under Creative Commons 3.0 License.

Allison Taylor Levine, president and founder of the Local Journalism Initiative of Delaware and vice president for marketing and communications at the Delaware Community Foundation, speaks with Troy Mix, associate director at the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration, about the importance of local news and information for our communities and efforts Allison is orchestrating to reinvigorate local journalism in Delaware. This interview covers the state of local journalism in Delaware, the types of local news and information that Delawareans need, and current programs and plans for the Local Journalism Initiative of Delaware. Allison is passionate about democracy, journalism, and community – especially in Delaware. After starting her career as a reporter at several newspapers, including The News Journal, Allison has spent the past 20 years in various communications and community leadership roles in Delaware. In 2021, Allison founded the Local Journalism Initiative of Delaware (https://ljidelaware.org/). LJI currently operates an internship program to deepen the pipeline of local reporters from historically underrepresented communities; leads the Delaware Journalism Collaborative; and is working to launch Spotlight Delaware, a new collaborative nonprofit newsroom to empower Delawareans with information about the impact of public policy issues and strengthen our overall news and information ecosystem. This episode was recorded on March 20, 2023, for First State Insights, a podcast presented by the Institute for Public Administration (IPA). For more First State Insights episodes, visit https://soundcloud.com/first-state-insights or search for "First State Insights" wherever you listen to podcasts. IPA is a research and public service center within the University of Delaware's Biden School of Public Policy & Administration. For more on IPA, visit https://www.bidenschool.udel.edu/ipa. Opening and closing music: "I Dunno" by Grapes, used under Creative Commons 3.0 License.

Tim Shaffer, Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Chair of Civil Discourse at the University of Delaware’s Joseph R. Biden, Jr. School of Public Policy and Administration, speaks with Troy Mix, associate director at the University of Delaware’s Institute for Public Administration, about the history, dimensions, and future of engaged universities in the United States. Topics covered in this interview include the development of the land-grant university system in the United States; the need for universities to foster democratic citizenship; and the efforts Tim and colleagues at the Biden School are leading to make students engaged and effective citizens. In March 2022, Dr. Shaffer was named the inaugural SNF Chair of Civil Discourse for the SNF Ithaca Initiative at the University of Delaware’s Biden School. In leading the Biden School’s SNF Ithaca Initiative (https://www.bidenschool.udel.edu/research-public-service/stavros-niarchos-foundation-ithaca-initiative), Shaffer guides the delivery of the SNF Ithaca Initiative’s academic curricula and experiential learning programs. Established in the fall of 2021 with a generous grant from SNF, the Biden School’s SNF Ithaca Initiative seeks to increase the quality and quantity of civil discourse and civic engagement by instilling core democratic values on UD’s campus and beyond. Shaffer is also director of Civic Engagement and Deliberative Democracy with the National Institute for Civil Discourse at the University of Arizona. As an interdisciplinary scholar and practitioner of civil discourse, deliberative democracy, and civic engagement, Shaffer focuses on the role of civic professionals in institutional settings such as government, higher education, and non-governmental organizations ((https://www.bidenschool.udel.edu/people/tshaffer). This episode was recorded on January 25, 2023, for First State Insights, a podcast presented by the Institute for Public Administration (IPA). For more First State Insights episodes, visit https://soundcloud.com/first-state-insights or search for “First State Insights” wherever you listen to podcasts. IPA is a research and public service center within the University of Delaware’s Biden School of Public Policy & Administration. For more on IPA, visit https://www.bidenschool.udel.edu/ipa. Opening and closing music: "I Dunno" by Grapes, used under Creative Commons 3.0 License.

Dan Shortridge, the author of DIY Public Relations, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director at the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration, about how communications professionals and organizations should tell their stories and generate publicity for their work. Dan Shortridge is a communications and marketing consultant and author with more than 20 years of experience in local public relations and daily journalism. He's led communications for state and local government agencies and helped support small businesses and nonprofits. Before moving into public service, he worked for 11 years as a reporter, editor, and designer at newspapers in Delaware, Maryland, and Ohio. In addition to authoring DIY Public Relations, he's the co-author of three local-interest books about Delaware and Delmarva. To learn more about Dan and his work, visit http://danshortridge.com/. This episode was recorded on October 6, 2022 for First State Insights, a podcast presented by the Institute for Public Administration (IPA). For more First State Insights episodes, visit https://soundcloud.com/first-state-insights or search for "First State Insights" wherever you listen to podcasts. IPA is a research and public service center within the University of Delaware's Biden School of Public Policy & Administration. For more on IPA, visit https://www.bidenschool.udel.edu/ipa. Opening and closing music: "I Dunno" by Grapes, used under Creative Commons 3.0 License.

Tim Gibbs and Dr. Omar Khan of the Delaware Academy of Medicine/Delaware Public Health Association (https://delamed.org/) speak about connections among health, housing, and place with Julia O’Hanlon and Sean O’Neill, Policy Scientists at the University of Delaware’s Institute for Public Administration. Topics covered in this August 22, 2022 conversation include the function of housing and place as social determinants of health, the importance of collaboration among housing, medical, and planning professionals, and the focus and value of resources provided through the Delaware Journal of Public Health (https://delamed.org/initiatives/delaware-journal-of-public-health/). Mr. Gibbs is the executive director of the Delaware Academy of Medicine / Delaware Public Health Association and publisher of the Delaware Journal of Public Health. A native Delawarean, he attended Wilmington Friends School, then Earlham College. He later became certified in nonprofit management from the University of Delaware and earned a Master’s degree in Public Health from Arcadia University. Dr. Khan is co-chair of the Delaware Public Health Association Advisory Council and serves as President & CEO of the Delaware Health Sciences Alliance (DHSA), a consortium of Christiana Care Health System, Thomas Jefferson University, Nemours, and the University of Delaware. He is also a practicing physician interested in general primary care, medical education, outcomes research infrastructure, and global health. The Institute for Public Administration is a research and public service center in the Joseph R. Biden, Jr. School of Public Policy & Administration at the University of Delaware. For more information, visit https://www.bidenschool.udel.edu/ipa. Opening and closing music: "I Dunno" by Grapes, used under Creative Commons 3.0 License.

Jenny McMillan, the President of JennyGems, speaks with Troy Mix, Associate Director at the University of Delaware's Institute for Public Administration, about her path to entrepreneurship and the challenges she's tackled since launching the business. JennyGems is a Delaware-based business focused on designing, making, and selling original wooden signs and other home décor items. Before officially launching in 2015, Jenny and her husband Dave began the business as a part-time hobby selling antiques and collectibles to supplement their income. This June 2, 2022 conversation focuses on Jenny's transition to full-time entrepreneurship and how the JennyGems team confronted trade war and pandemic challenges by moving forward as a manufacturer of their own products and realizing strong growth in the process. To learn more about JennyGems, visit https://www.jennygems.com/. This episode is presented as part of the Delaware Founders' Stories series—a collection of conversations with underestimated entrepreneurs focused on documenting entrepreneurial journeys, recounting successes and failures, and reflecting on lessons learned for moving beyond the obstacles along the way. Listen to all episodes in the series at https://soundcloud.com/first-state-insights/sets/delaware-founders-stories. For more information about the Institute for Public Administration, visit ipa.udel.edu. Opening and closing music: "I Dunno" by Grapes, used under Creative Commons 3.0 License.