Dr. Howard McCurdy is professor of public affairs in the public administration and policy
department at American University in Washington, D.C. Public management, organization
theory, science policy, and financial management are the focus of Professor McCurdy’s teaching
and research. 
 
An expert on space exploration policy, he recently completed a study on the challenges of
Financing the New Space Industry. Its publication follows a history of government innovation,
NASA Spaceflight, co-edited with Roger D. Launius. His book Space and the American
Imagination, now in its second edition, received the Eugene M. Emme Astronautical Literature
Award. A co-authored book on Robots in Space explores the human-machine debate, while
Faster, Better, Cheaper provides a critical analysis of cost-cutting initiatives in the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration. An earlier study of NASA’s organizational culture, Inside
NASA, won the Henry Adams prize for that year’s best history of the federal government.
Among his other publications are books on public administration, the space station decision,
and the myth of presidential leadership. He is often consulted by the media on public policy
issues and has appeared on national news outlets such as the PBS News Hour, National Public
Radio, and NBC Nightly News.
 
Degrees
Ph.D. Cornell University
M.A. University of Washington
B.A. University of Washington