In this paper, the author writes:

"Confronted with decreasing civic engagement and social capital, universities are being sought as partners in the movement to address our faltering democracy. University based service-learning programs provide an opportunity to address our faltering democracy, while addressing the University mission of service to the community."

In this paper, the authors ask:

"How do non-profits, and specifically professional societies such as the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA), sustain relevancy? How do we honor our past, while focusing upon the creation of value for the members of tomorrow? Are associations such as ours relevant to today's needs, to the expectations of tomorrow, and equipped to address the issues and trends of the future?"

In this paper, Dr. Hauptmann provides a historical context and identifies seven elements required for any civic engagement activity.  A native of Poland, Dr. Hauptmann was involved in the resistance to the Nazi invasion of Poland, and during the Warsaw invasion of 1944, he served as one of the "sewer rats." After having served time as a prisoner of war, he completed his Ph.D. at the University of Innsbruck (Austria) when the war ended and immigrated to the United States, where he pursued post-doctoral studies at Northwestern University for one year. He then joined the Park faculty in 1951 and remained for more than fifty years at the institution which he loved. He served as the founding dean of its Graduate School of Public Affairs, which was renamed the Hauptmann School for Public Affairs upon his retirement.