Rate My Professor Sukumar Ganapati

Sukumar Ganapati is Professor and Chair of the Department of Public Policy and Administration at Florida International University in the Steven J. Green School of International and Public Affairs, a position he has held since his promotion in 2022, following his tenure as Associate Professor from 2010 and Assistant Professor since joining FIU in 2004. He earned a Ph.D. in Planning from the School of Policy, Planning, and Development at the University of Southern California in 2003, a Master of Planning from the same institution in 1994, and a Bachelor of Architecture with Honors from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur in 1986. Prior to FIU, Ganapati served as Assistant Director of the Center for International Policy, Planning, and Development at USC, and taught urban planning at California State University, Northridge, California Polytechnic State University, Pomona, USC, and Manipal Institute of Technology in India. He directed FIU's Ph.D. program in Public Affairs from 2013 to 2016.

Ganapati's research focuses on digital and local governance, with key themes including cybersecurity, agile government, emerging technology applications in public service, open government, and local governance. He has published about 30 peer-reviewed journal articles, 15 book chapters, and four research monographs in outlets such as Public Administration Review, Government Information Quarterly, and International Review of Administrative Sciences. Prominent works include "Agile: A New Way of Governing" (Public Administration Review, 2021), "Prospects and Challenges of Sharing Economy for the Public Sector" (Government Information Quarterly, 2018), and "Do Transparency Mechanisms Reduce Government Corruption? A Meta-Analysis" (International Review of Administrative Sciences, 2023, Third Best Paper Award). His contributions have earned awards like the Public Administration Educator of the Year (South Florida Chapter of ASPA, 2012), Outstanding Professor Award (CSUN, 2001), Honorable Mention for Chester Rapkin Award (ACSP, 2008), and Chester A. Newland Presidential Citation of Merit (ASPA, 2025). As PI or Co-PI, he has obtained over $2 million in funding, including NSF's Advanced Cyber Infrastructure Training in Policy Informatics (over $1 million) and Cyber Florida's Cybersecurity Pathway ($0.6 million). He chairs ASPA's Section on Science and Technology in Government, co-edited special issues in Information Polity and Journal of Public Affairs Education, and co-chaired conferences including the Southeastern Conference for Public Administration.