Municipal & County Administration

City and county managers, department heads, and other city or county officials whose responsibilities require an understanding of functions beyond individual areas of specialization.

For participants seeking credit for CLE, CPE, or other continuing education or certification programs, you will be provided with the necessary paperwork and attendance verification at the conclusion of the course. 

We are also pleased to offer the option of receiving UNC course credit. Each participant, if they apply, will receive 4.0 hours of course credit from UNC, which may be applied to other existing graduate or undergraduate degree programs, subject to their approval.  There is an additional tuition fee of $1,425 for North Carolina residents and $4,501 for non-residents, which you will be billed separately by the University.  Please note that this tuition fee is subject to change.

Alumni Association

The Alumni Association of the Municipal and County Administration Course offers up to two full scholarships to qualified applicants and their units of government.  Since these scholarships have historically been designed to help colleagues who might not otherwise be able to attend the course, financial need will weigh heavily in the award decision.  Other factors that will be considered are the number of individuals in a particular unit that have already graduated from the course and how critical the course is to the governmental unit and the applicant’s future career goals.  Please click here to view Alumni Scholarship Application. 

Local Government Federal Credit Union

The Local Government Federal Credit Union sponsors a School of Government Scholarship Award program.  Click here for further information and to download an application.

The Municipal and County Administration Course makes significant use of case studies. The case studies reflect the experiences of cities and counties of different sizes and give course participants the opportunity to work in small groups to apply and discuss material covered in class. The final course sessions consist entirely of small-group work on case studies that weave together the variety of subjects covered in the courses.

Gregory S. Allison

Major Course Subject Areas

Local Government Law broadly encompasses a variety of critical topics including open meetings and public records laws and purchasing and contracting laws, as well as laws covering the disposal of public property. It also includes laws governing elections and the court system in North Carolina.

Organization & Management takes an extensive and in-depth look at the basic functions and structure of local governments in North Carolina and the United States and at complex intergovernmental relationships, including aspects of regionalism, which guide the way we govern. It also covers important topics such as risk management, emergency management, and ramifications of public information.

Finance & Budgeting explores the constitutional and statutory aspects of government finance in North Carolina in addition to the tax and public finance systems that furnish the foundation for public administration. Students participate in budget preparation during case study work, which presents the opportunity to consider user fees and alternative sources of revenue. Additional topics include property tax administration, capital planning and finance, debt policies and procedures, street financing, cost accounting, and auditing.

Public Employment Law impacts every aspect of local government administration and management. Topic areas include performance appraisal, discipline and discharge, and diversity in the workplace. Additionally, significant attention is given to federal and state laws and case law governing public personnel administration in North Carolina local government.

Planning & Regulation of Development delves into issues and implications of the municipal and county planning functions together with environmental law and planning, housing and community development, economic development law, and administration and zoning, subdivision, and building regulations.

Municipal & County Services investigates the laws and issues relevant to organizing and providing municipal and county services in North Carolina local government. This includes, but is not limited to, law enforcement, fire protection, solid waste collection and disposal, public health, mental health and social services, public schools, and jails.

The course is offered in seven sessions of four days each between September and April.  Each session will begin at mid-day Tuesday and will end Friday afternoon.  This schedule is designed to allow for same-day travel on the first day of each session, reducing hotel costs.

September 10-13, 2013
October 15-18, 2013
December 3-6, 2013
January 14-17, 2014
February 18-21, 2014
March 18-21, 2014
April 8-11, 2014

All sessions of Municipal and County Administration are held at the Knapp-Sanders Building, home of the School of Government on the campus of The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.