On July 1 and 2, the Assembly Hall of the Library of the Madrid-Vicálvaro Campus hosted the Summer Course “Getting to know the Backstage of Institutions: Presidencies, Mayor's Offices and Government Centers in Spain”. This forum, directed by professors Daniel Casal, David Delgado Ramos and Leticia Delgado, from the Department of Public Law I and Political Science of the FCJP, with the support of the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP), became a space of reflection on the units that, at different levels of government, provide strategic advice and immediate support to presidencies and mayors.
The course began with a keynote presentation by Professor of Political Science and Administration Manuel Arenilla, who reflected on the position of Government Centers in the Science of Administration. The round tables, moderated by Mercedes Alda Fernández, Juan Antonio Ramos Gallarín, Cecilia Rosado and María Dominguez Valcarce, addressed different tables. The operation of La Moncloa with the participation of José Luís Ayllón, former Director of Cabinet during the Presidency of Mariano Rajoy, as well as the current Director General of Message of the Presidency Cabinet, Jesús Perea. The presidential cabinets in the Autonomous Communities were also discussed, with the participation of Rafael Lemus, who was Guillermo Fernández Vara's chief of staff in Extremadura, together with Oscar Romera, responsible at the time for the cabinet of the Community's Ministry of Finance. from Madrid. In addition, the function of cabinets in Local Governments was explored, with the intervention of Jorge Moreta, current head of the Mayor's Cabinet in the Madrid City Council, Manuel Julio Sánchez Senn, former Director of Cabinet in the Provincial Council of A Coruña, and the current deputy in the Madrid Assembly, Cristina González, who shared her experience as Municipal Government Coordinator in the Getafe City Council during the years 2015-2019.
The “Presidential Voice” and government communication were prominent topics on the second day. In a round table, the head of politics at El Periódico de España, May Mariño, together with Daniel Campos, former Director of Communication of the Ministry of the Interior, and the professor of Political Science, Rubén Sánchez Medero, analyzed from different perspectives the importance of institutional communication for government management. In addition, the course included two workshops: one on cabinet organization, taught by the management team, and another on leadership for public management, led by Professor Ricardo García Vegas.
The closing of these two days of debate on the functioning and role of the cabinets was led by the General Director of Territorial Coordination of the FEMP, Francisco Díaz Latorre.