Instructions: Students will write a 14-15 page final paper that traces the five stages of the
policy process, including the Agenda Setting Stage, Formulation Stage, Decision-Making Stage,
Implementation Stage, and Evaluation Stage. The final paper should include the following
components: A) a brief introduction that reviews the policy, the policy’s importance, and overall
organization of the paper B) a section that reviews the stages model and highlights the
strengths and weaknesses of the model C) a section, with individual subheadings, that applies
each stage of the stages model to the policy of interest D) a concluding section that discusses
the current state of the policy and where the policy is heading in the future. Students may
include class readings, but the final paper must incorporate at least 10 outside sources that are not in the syllabus. At least 5 outside sources must come from scholarly works, such as
academic journals, books, book chapters, government publications, or policy briefs. The other 5 sources may include other works, such as new articles, academic blogs, and polling firms.