SYLLABUS
APEC 452/652 Agricultural Policy
Spring 2007

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

1. To develop an understanding of the U.S. agricultural policy through an analysis of the economic and political forces affecting policy decision-making and the policy instruments that have been and are being used.
2. To provide each student the opportunity to investigate an specific policy issue and to build an understanding of the forces affecting that issue.

TRIP TO DC:

Students in APEC 452 and APEC 822 will have the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C. where we will visit individuals involved with domestic and international agricultural policy.

LETTER GRADES:

Final letter grades in each case will be assigned by ranking numerical scores. There is no predetermined score for a specific letter grade. Letter grades are assigned based on the relativity of all numerical scores.

GRADES:

Two exams (dates tentative                                                   50%
Final exam (cumulative)                                                         25%
Other: (papers, homework, class discussion, attendance)       25%

Those enrolled for graduate credit will be required to complete a term paper that includes an economic analysis of their selected policy issue.

ATTENDANCE POLICY:

Attendance will not be checked on a daily basis. However, attendance is very important. In a policy course, class discussion is very important and informative. Historically, there has been a strong correlation between class attendance and final grades. The instructors will inform the class in advance if they will not attend a particular class, in which case arrangements will be made for a substitute instructor or other alternatives. However, in case of an absence for which no advance arrangements have been made, students are authorized to leave after a 10-minute wait.

TEXT:

Agricultural and Food Policy, 6th edition, by Knutson, Pen and Flinchbaugh. Publisher: Pearson Prentice Hall

COURSE OUTLINE:

The outline of the text will be the basis for discussion. Each chapter topic will be discussed in order. Additional material may be assigned.

SEMESTER PROJECT:

The class will be divided into teams of 4 or 5 students each. Each team will be assigned a topic of current policy interest. Each team member will take responsibility for a relevant aspect of the policy issue (i.e. farmer interests, consumer interests, international trade, environmental impacts, U.S. national interests, South Carolina interests) Teams will make short--15 minute--presentations approximately every two weeks following their issue throughout the semester and relating it to materials discussed in class lectures. Written memos will be submitted on the same schedule as class presentations. Memos will be written with the objective of distilling the essence of policy concerns into a short--2-3 page--document to inform a decision-maker of the factors he must be aware of as he forms his position.

1. Giving, receiving or using unauthorized aid on any academic work;
2. Plagiarism, which includes the copying of language, structure, or ideas of another and attributing the work to one's own efforts;
3. Attempts to copy, edit, or delete computer files that belong to another person or use of Computer Center account numbers that belong to another person without the permission of the file owner, account owner or file number owner.

       SPRING 2007 COURSE LIST      AG ECON HOME

2007 by Michael D. Hammig, Professor, Department of Applied Economics & Statistics, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634-0313

updated 2/27/07