Ed Gibson
associate professor
School of Public and International Affairs
Contact Information:
Phone: 410.837.6117
Email: egibson@ubalt.edu
Ph.D., Virginia Tech
M.B.A., University of Maryland, College Park
B.S., University of North Carolina
Ed Gibson's C.V. (.pdf)
Being a latecomer to teaching heightens my appreciation for the exchange of ideas in the classroom. I spent the early part of my career as a programmer, supervisor and manager within the information technology industry, working for a company called EDS, better known for its famous founder, Ross Perot, who ran for president in 1992 and 1996.
Getting my M.B.A. from the University of Maryland enabled me to swap the language of bits and bytes for that of dollars and cents by joining a government contractor, Performance Engineering Corp., where I consulted with federal agencies, chiefly the federal courts, for more than a dozen years. Practicing the arcane art of cost-benefit analysis and related programmatic and financial techniques introduced me to bureaucratic decision-making processes. I gained a deep respect for the capabilities of public managers, who often labored under tremendous deficits of resources and excesses of guidance, yet managed to conduct the public’s business. In particular, visiting federal courts, which fairly hummed with the steady disposition of cases and dispensing of justice, and interviewing judges and court executives impressed upon me the reality of high-performance public organizations.
Daily involvement with federal agencies forced me to confront a new set of issues stemming from missions undertaken in the public interest, in sharp contrast to the for-profit orientation of the IT industry, where I’d spent 15 years. Accordingly, I set about gaining a theoretical grasp of public administration by getting a Ph.D. from Virginia Tech—a 10-year endeavor! Joining the faculty of the University of Baltimore represents a fresh opportunity to tackle the challenges of public service, without the need to stoke the “bottom line” as a member of the “shadow government,” with its attendant consequences of downsizing and contracting out.
I feel most fortunate to be part of the UBalt community. Aside from a business degree from the University of North Carolina, all of my education has been obtained while working. The challenges of the part-time student are second nature to me. While pleased to take my position in front of the class, I remember what it feels like from the other side and do my best to keep the learning experience mutual, engaging and light.
I live in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley with my wife of 25 years and our daughter, whenever she’s home from college.