School of Government & Law

Message from the Dean

Taft University believes it is crucial for students to understand the underlying principles of changes occurring in today’s world, and has designed courses and curricula reflecting these changes. Exponentially increasing technologies, industry convergence, and the resulting impact on governing bodies and decision makers unleash a new and very dynamic era of education and laws attached to the process.

Our society will need visionary and pace setting leaders moving teams and organizations toward a shared vision of goals while at the same time setting high standards marked by achievable and realistic goals. Policy makers will need to recognize the impact of climate migration, levels of displacement among populations, and the cost of dollars and human suffering attached to this, as well as urban relocation.

In 2016 the Brooking Institute looked at some of the largest metro economics in the world and found if there are more people, there will be more productivity. Density apparently drives innovation. A 2018 McKinsey study showed that green house gases could be reduced by a significant amount if we would build smart cities. These are topics and issues that urban planners and lawmakers will need to understand and incorporate in future decision-making processes.

With a globally changing labour force, a renewed understanding of compositions of cities will become a crucial component, as will the understanding of data analytics and big data. Data is power and as Francis Hutcheson back in 1725 said, “That action is best, which procures the greatest happiness for the greatest numbers” – a statement that is applicable to our changing global environment.

Anita Cassard, MPA, PhD
Dean, School of Government & Law

About Dr Anita Cassard

Dr. Cassard completed her undergraduate coursework at the Economic Research Institute and Institute of Advanced Studies in Vienna, Austria. She received her MPS from Milano The New School for Management and Urban Policy in New York City, and her doctoral degree from Walden University in Minneapolis, Minnesota (Applied Management and Decision Sciences).

Dr. Cassard is a member of Sigma Iota Epsilon-Zeta Rho Chapter and Delta Mu Delta, and has published papers in scientific journals such as Insight – A Journal of Scholarly Teaching, JABE- the Journal of Applied Business and Economics, and JSBHS- Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences. VDM-Publishing in Germany with distributions in Europe, Asia, and the United States published her book, The Sherpa Leadership Model: A Model of Disempowerment.

Dr. Cassard has spent the past twenty years building bridges between higher education and the global business environment to empower people of all backgrounds to work together and become successful citizens.