C. Patrick Washington, a Virginia Tech doctoral student in the Center for Public Administration and Policy, College of Architecture and Urban Studies, has won the Mortimer A. Dittenhofer Dissertation Research Award for his research proposal entitled, "Examining the Fiscal Implications of a 'Catch 22' Mission: The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Proliferation of Improper Payments in the Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina."

The Dittenhofer Dissertation Award is sponsored by the Academy for Government Accountability, a not-for-profit, 501(c)(3) organization, whose mission is to support research and education aimed at bringing transparency and accountability to government financial management and to forge relationships among government, business and academia.

It is competitively awarded to a doctoral candidate pursuing an advanced post-graduate degree in auditing, accounting, budgeting, public administration, or related areas, such as finance or business, with an emphasis in government financial management from an accredited educational institution. The award is used to foster more dissertation research in the fields of government financial management, accountability, budgeting, governmental accounting, and auditing.

The Dittenhofer Dissertation Award is named after Mortimer A. Dittenhofer, Ph.D., certified government financial manager, CIA, a former Association of Government Accountants president and an early leader in government financial management. He chaired the group that developed the first edition of Government Auditing Standards (The Yellow Book), during his tenure at the U.S. Government Accountability Office. Dittenhofer is emeritus professor of accounting at Florida International University in Miami, Fla.

Washington, originally from Augusta, Ga., received a master’s in public administration from Virginia Tech, a master's in business administration from Mercer University, and a bachelor’s degree in graphic communications management from Georgia Southern University. Upon completion of the Ph.D., Washington plans to continue his government financial management interests either in academe or the federal government.

The award was presented to Washington by Dittenhofer at the annual meeting of the American Accounting Association in Chicago.

The Center for Public Administration and Policy is located in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies within its School of Public and International Affairs. The center offers both the Ph.D. in public affairs and public administration and master of public administration degree. The master of public administration program is currently ranked No. 27 in the nation by U.S. News and World Report, placing it in the top 10 percent of U.S. master’s programs in public affairs and public administration.

The College of Architecture and Urban Studies is composed of four schools: the School of Architecture + Design, including architecture, industrial design, interior design and landscape architecture; the School of Public and International Affairs, including urban affairs and planning, public administration and policy and government and international affairs; the Myers-Lawson School of Construction, which includes building construction in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies and construction engineering management in the College of Engineering; and the School of the Visual Arts, including programs in studio art, visual communication and art history.

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