Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Public Administration
Jordan is a Ph.D. candidate in Public Administration & Policy at the University of Georgia. His research interests focus broadly on public management organizational behaviors: how public sector managers and leaders can improve their relationship with subordinates to reduce adverse attitudes and behaviors on the job.
Prior to graduate studies, Jordan worked for the Social Security Administration’s Disability Determination Section (DDS) for the state of West Virginia as a Senior Disability Examiner from 2006-2012. His job duties involved solo and joint adjudication of disability claims, including Quick Disability Determination (QDD) cases for the severely impaired (e.g. Down’s syndrome, ALS, terminal cancers). He received five commendations for case adjudication excellence, including a 100% Quality Assurance rating in 2011.
At the job, Jordan chaired an eight-month inter-office Forms Committee, submitting a comprehensive change proposal to state management to enhance outdated language and design of several hundred documents, the state’s iLevy computer interface, barcoding, mailing, and electronic inter-office communications. He and his team received the SSA Regional Excellence-in-Service Award in recognition for the resulting efficiency improvements.
Additional committee work involved participation in the state Medical Cost Reduction Team where he sought feedback from state doctors and designed new Treating Physician patient information forms. This resulted in a steep decline in the number of DDS-ordered medical examinations and significant state agency savings. He was awarded the SSA Associate Commissioner’s award as a result.
Jordan completed a B.A. in Psychology (High Honors) in 2005 from Cedarville University in Ohio where presented a 170-page critical analysis of the Ethics Codes of the American Psychological Association, American Counseling Association, and American Association of Marriage & Family Therapy at the Mid-Atlantic Undergraduate Psych Research Conference for his senior project. He performed his internship in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, working with male sex offenders in group therapy behavior modification counseling (with and without spouses).
He graduated with his Masters in Public Administration with an emphasis in Public Management in 2014. Coursework included STATA data analysis, leadership, organizational behavior, conflict resolution (with arbitration writing), grant writing, finance, and many others. A course highlight was his summer 2013 participation in the 11th Annual Case Study in Seoul, South Korea – a partnership and cultural exchange with American and British universities, the University of Seoul, and the Seoul Metropolitan Government.
He won first place in the 2014 Georgia Students for Public Administration Policy Competition by presenting an organizational change plan for homeless shelters seeking to implement housing alternatives for chronically homeless and disabled individuals in the greater Boston area.
