Public Policy Commons^™

Nevada System Of Higher Education (Nshe) Administrative Costs, 2019, Olivia K. Cheche, Saha Salahi, Marie A. Falcone, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Higher Education

The purpose of this Fact Sheet is to examine expenditures of the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE), particularly expenses allocated to staff salaries. This data is collected from the FY19 State of Nevada operating budget, and Transparent Nevada, a website that posts the salaries of public employees including NSHE staff.

Clearing Cluster Munition Remnants 2020, Mine Action Review

Global CWD Repository

Key Findings:

• In the 10 years since the entry into force of the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) in 2020, a total of more than 766 square kilometres of cluster munition-contaminated area has been cleared. During survey, clearance, and spot task operations nearly one million unexploded submunitions have been destroyed. Countless lives and limbs have undoubtedly been saved as a direct result, as well as the broader contribution to development.
• In 2019 alone, a global total of more than 130 square kilometres was cleared of cluster munition remnants (CMR), a new record, beating the previous high (in 2018) by nearly …

Promoting Transit-Oriented Developments By Addressing Barriers Related To Land Use, Zoning, And Value Capture, Shishir Mathur, Aaron Gatdula

Mineta Transportation Institute

This study advances land use, transportation planning, and public finance research by identifying: a) the various land use, zoning, and value capture-related barriers to the construction of transit-oriented developments (TODs); and b) the major strategies that are commonly used or could be used to address these barriers. The value capture (VC) tools include joint development projects, tax increment financing, special assessments, lease/sale of land or air rights, and impact fees. The research finds that while a large proportion of jurisdictions across the US have TODs, land use, zoning, and VC-related barriers often impede their construction. Most transit agencies are not …

A Clean Energy Future: The Policy Environment Of Public Service Enterprise Group, Justin T. Letizia

Student Publications

The very nature of environmental policy permeates all areas of society; climate change, in its essence, is inherently a public dilemma. Thus, strategies to address and mitigate the adverse effects of the climate crisis, whether originating from governmental actors or private corporations, must consider and account for the many stakeholders who stand to be impacted by its far-reaching policy. For a company such as PSEG to implement effective climate policy, it is required that they develop, maintain, and leverage relationships with multiple stakeholders at the municipal, county, state, and federal levels, as well as promote a positive reputation among its …

Breonna’S Law: The Genesis, Not The Culmination, For Policy Response To Violent Confrontation During No-Knock Search Warrants, Ethan S. Wilt

Student Publications

First, this paper constructs the background on search warrants, including the legal precedent, policy environment, and stakeholders involved. Second, and most importantly, it will analyze the outcomes, impacts, and, particularly, the disproportionate minority impact of each section of Breonna’s Law. Lastly, this paper will contribute an informed assessment of the policy and further policy recommendations that can be taken into account to address the issue of violent confrontations and casualties, especially against people of color, during the execution of search warrants.

Planned Policy Action, Nicole T. Cesanek

Student Publications

Gettysburg College was built on the foundation of “doing great work,” not just for the betterment of ourselves and our education but also for others in the college and surrounding community. This project seeks to do precisely this, encourage everyone, including students, tourists, and community members, to do great work in benefiting others around them. It primarily consists of a comprehensive summary of the plans and actions required to create a community-wide tab collection bin to benefit the Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC). The project seeks to achieve two main goals: encourage people to collect and donate their aluminum can …

Clearing The Mines 2020: A Report By Mine Action Review For The Eighteenth Meeting Of States Parties To The Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, Mine Action Review

Global CWD Repository

Key Findings:

• In 2019, a global total of more than 131 square kilometers was cleared of anti-personnel mines, with more than 96% of recorded clearance occurring in States Parties to the APMBC. However, this total is a marked decrease on output in 2018 of more than 155 square kilometers, and was the lowest recorded clearance globally for more than ten years. The true total area of clearance is probably considerably greater, but data recording and reporting problems prevent accurate reporting of a higher figure, in addition to a lack of transparency by several States not party.
• In total, almost 164,000 …

Agent-Based Modelling Of Values: The Case Of Value Sensitive Design For Refugee Logistics, Christine Boshuijzen-Van Burken, Ross J. Gore, Frank Dignum, Lamber Royakkers, Phillip Wozny, F. Leron Shults

VMASC Publications

We have used value sensitive design as a method to develop an agent-based model of values in humanitarian logistics for refugees. Schwartz’s theory of universal values is implemented in the model in such a way that agents can make value trade-offs, which are operationalized into a measure of refugee wellbeing and a measure of public opinion about how the refugee logistics is being handled. By trying out different ‘value scenarios’, stakeholders who are responsible for, or involved in refugee logistics can have insights into the effects of various value choices. The model is visualized and made usable as a platform …

Improving Health Care In Nevada, Ember Smith, Kaylie Pattni

Policy Briefs and Reports

Across the United States, improvements in health outcomes lag while health care costs rapidly rise. Medical personnel and resource shortages combined with high underinsured and uninsured rates further complicate access to quality, affordable health care. In order to better understand state-level solutions, we explore factors that contribute to health care deficiencies and emphasize Nevada’s unique obstacles.

A Guide To The Oslo Action Plan And Provisional Results Of 2020 Monitoring: Survey And Clearance, Mine Action Review

Global CWD Repository

This Guide and provisional results of 2020 monitoring by Mine Action Review aim to support the measurable and accountable implementation of Article 5 of the 1997 Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention. They do so by focusing on the Oslo Action Plan, adopted at the Fourth Review Conference in November 2019, describing how the Action Plan addresses survey and clearance, and explaining how progress in implementing those commitments in the Action Plan will be assessed. This Guide follows the Oslo Action Plan’s approach by detailing commitments that apply specifically to survey and clearance operations in all affected States Parties, as well …

The South, The West, And The Meanings Of Humanitarian Intervention In History, Patrick Quinton-Brown

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

As it has been written, the history of humanitarian intervention is all too Whiggish and all too white. By conceptualising humanitarian intervention in the way that they do, orthodox histories should be seen as entangled in debates about the origins of human rights but also, perhaps more crucially, debates about the various formations and reinventions of human rights. Alternative codifications of rights reveal the historical possibility of a Southern practice of what we would almost certainly call ‘humanitarian intervention’. The record of a radical Third World practice to save strangers from the atrocities of colonialism and extreme racism is also …

State Of The Latino Non-Profit Sector In Massachusetts, Fabián Torres-Ardila, Phillip Granberry, Krizia Valentino

Gastón Institute Publications

Latinos are one of the fastest growing ethnic groups in Massachusetts. Between 1980 and 2017, the Massachusetts Latino population increased by 475%, with many new arrivals coming from Central and South America. In Massachusetts, the top ten Latino subgroups by population size are: Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Brazilians, Salvadorans, Guatemalans, Mexicans, Colombians, Cubans, Ecuadorans, and Hondurans. These varied national origins reflect the diversity of the state’s Latino community and its breadth of strengths and needs. The Mauricio Gastón Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy (Gastón Institute) estimates that by 2035, the Latino population will represent nearly 15.3% of the …

Latinos In Massachusetts: Ecuadorians, Phillip Granberry, Krizia Valentino

Gastón Institute Publications

The Gastón Institute’s 2020 Latinos in Massachusetts series focuses on the ten largest Latino populations located throughout the state. In order of size, these Latino populations are Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Brazilians, Salvadorans, Guatemalans, Mexicans, Colombians, Cubans, Hondurans, and Ecuadorians. This report analyzes Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) data from the 2017 American Community Survey (ACS) conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Our descriptive analysis uses both household- and individual-level data to estimate population size and percentages and to compare Ecuadorians to Other Latinos and Non-Latinos in the state.

Towards A Workforce Development Action Plan In The City Of Chelsea: Community Voices, Fabián Torres-Ardila, Daniela Bravo, Henry Chavez, Lorna Rivera

Gastón Institute Publications

The mission of the Gastón Institute at UMass Boston is to inform policymakers and the public about issues vital to the state’s growing Latino community and to provide research, analysis, and information necessary for more effective public policy development. The Gastón Institute has a long track record of conducting collaborative mixed-methods research in Chelsea, especially with Latino immigrants from Central and South America. For example, in 2008-2010, Gastón researchers worked with Chelsea Public Schools to evaluate family literacy programs at five schools. Since 2016, Gastón faculty have been working with Chelsea High School and Bunker Hill Community College’s Chelsea campus …

Social Media Potentials In Supporting Women Entrepreneurship: The Case Of Egypt, Gehan Ahmed Aboutaleb

Theses and Dissertations

The number of women entrepreneurs in Egypt starting and running their business online has been remarkably rising in recent years. Thanks to social media’s ability to harness some of the obstacles women business-owned enterprises encounter, it has become an essential platform for providing women with entrepreneurial opportunities and facilitating their own business. Social media is becoming more of an indispensable instrument for the businesses' survival, especially in light of the implications posed by the recent outbreak of global pandemic COVID-19 in terms of movement restrictions and social distancing measures. However, a dearth in the literature on the impact of social …

Social Worker Shortages And The Rise In Competition For A Competent Child Welfare Workforce, Anita Barbee

Other QIC-WD Products

Several national studies have been conducted over the past few years (e.g. Hooyman, & Uniitzer, 2011; Lin, Lin, & Zhang, 2016) to project the number of social workers that will be needed by the year 2030. What they all point to is a huge deficit in the number of social workers (upwards of 200,000) needed to care for children, the elderly and those with addictions, mental health, and other health issues. However, those estimates may be low given that as of 2018 there was no regular gathering of comprehensive data on workforce needs in such areas as child welfare, juvenile …

Working From Home And The Office During A Pandemic: The Experience Of Louisiana Child Welfare Workers, Quality Improvement Center For Workforce Development

Other QIC-WD Products

Staff from the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services, Child Welfare Division (CWD), like many other child welfare professionals from across the country, have been heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. CWD caseworkers had to adjust to working at home, interacting with families differently, and remaining connected to colleagues via technology. It was, according to some staff, difficult and challenging at times. CWD staff in three parishes that have implemented the job redesign in partnership with the Quality Improvement Center for Workforce Development (QICWD) were asked to provide some insight into their experience of working during the pandemic. The …

Unbuckling The Seat Belt Defense In Arkansas, Spencer G. Dougherty

Arkansas Law Review

The “seat belt defense” has been hotly litigated over the decades in numerous jurisdictions across the United States. It is an affirmative defense that, when allowed, reduces a plaintiff’s recovery for personal injuries resulting from an automobile collision where the defendant can establish that those injuries would have been less severe or avoided entirely had the plaintiff been wearing an available seat belt. This is an unsettled legal issue in Arkansas, despite the growing number of cases in which the seat belt defense is raised as an issue. Most jurisdictions, including Arkansas, initially rejected the defense, but the basis for …

Telework, Megan Paul

Umbrella Summaries

What is telework?

Telework is a type of alternative work arrangement in which employees perform some or all of their job duties at an approved location other than their official worksite. Other labels for telework include telecommuting, remote work, mobile work, virtual work, distance work, distributed work, work from/at home, and flexplace, though definitions can vary (e.g., Allen, Golden, & Shockley, 2015). Telework arrangements can be informal and determined through individual agreements or formal, as part of a more structured program. Formal arrangements may be governed by federal or state statute, executive orders, organizational policy, or collective bargaining agreements. The …

Examining Community Resilience In The Disaster-Prone City Of Conway, Sc, Lamesha L. Craft

Journal of Sustainable Social Impact

Social science research on disaster-prone communities often cites social capital and community resilience to examine methods for improving emergency management and disaster risk reduction. The City of Conway, South Carolina, is susceptible to numerous natural disasters throughout the year and it has sustained damage from four major flooding disasters since 2015. This qualitative, ethnographic case study used interview data collected from nine Conway residents to examine and analyze perceived threats to citizens of Conway following a large-scale natural disaster and the possible responses by citizens in need of government assistance. Findings reveal that participants have endured more than one large-scale …

Traffic Scorecard In Mountain West Cities, Kelliann Beavers, Eshaan Vakil, Katie M. Gilbertson, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Transportation & Infrastructure

This fact sheet presents congestion and mobility trends in 14 Mountain West cities as compiled by INRIX Research and author Trevor Reed, in the Global Traffic Scorecard, March 2020. The INRIX Global Traffic Scorecard examines the impact of vehicle travel on 975 congested cities in the world; this fact sheet focuses on the Mountain West, providing insight on the ranking and impacts of congestion. This fact sheet also supplements INRIX’s scorecard with population data from the U.S. Census Bureau to provide context for the rankings.

A Century Later: Rural Public Health's Enduring Challenges And Opportunities., Erika C. Ziller Phd, Carly Milkowski Mph

Population Health

The US public health community has demonstrated increasing awareness of rural health disparities in the past several years. Although current interest is high, the topic is not new, and some of the earliest public health literature includes reports on infectious disease and sanitation in rural places. Continuing through the first third of the 20th century, dozens of articles documented rural disparities in infant and maternal mortality, sanitation and water safety, health care access, and among Black, Indigenous, and People of Color communities. Current rural research reveals similar challenges, and strategies suggested for addressing rural-urban health disparities 100 years ago resonate …

Perspectives From A Permanency Team, Hannah Gettys, Natasha Mccoy, Jameka Paige

Other QIC-WD Products

Louisiana’s job redesign includes the creation of permanency teams (formerly known as the foster care program). Permanency teams consist of pairs of caseworkers who work together on a shared caseload, with one worker assisting parents and the other focusing on the care and needs of the children. Permanency teams are supported by a child welfare team specialist (CWTS) who assumes more of essential administrative tasks such as gathering documentation and transporting children, so the child welfare worker can focus on more clinical tasks. Teaming was a new way to approach the child welfare worker job. Some staff members were apprehensive …

A Global Welcome: Metro Chicago's Approach To Immigrant Inclusion, Paul Mcdaniel, Rob Paral

Faculty Articles

Global cities significantly shape our world by driving solutions across a range of challenges, including migration. A new Chicago Council report, A Global Welcome: Metro Chicago’s Approach to Immigrant Inclusion, provides an overview of greater Chicago’s immigrant community and highlights unique approaches taken to create a more inclusive city, while also emphasizing ways for Chicago and other cities to improve. The report is authored by Paul N. McDaniel, Associate Professor of Geography at Kennesaw State University, and Rob Paral, Nonresident Fellow at the Chicago Council.

Psychological Contract Breach, Dana Hollinshead, Megan Paul

Umbrella Summaries

What is psychological contract breach?

A psychological contract is defined as “individual beliefs, shaped by the organization, regarding terms of an exchange agreement between individuals and their organization” (Rousseau, 1995, p. 9, as cited in Zhao, Wayne, Glibkowski, & Bravo, 2007, p. 649). Psychological contracts do not necessarily involve legal contracts; they reflect promissory expectations that are the upshot of perceived implicit or explicit promises by one’s employer (Robinson, Kraatz, & Rousseau, 1996, p. 575). By extension, a psychological contract breach is an employee’s perception that their employer has failed to fulfill promises or expectations (Zhao et al., 2007). A …

Covid-19: Working Parents And Child Care In The Mountain West, Olivia K. Cheche, Vanessa Booth, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Economic Development & Workforce

This fact sheet synthesizes data on child-care dependent parents in various Mountain West metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs). This synthesis is based on an original report by Brookings Research Analyst, Nicole Bateman, titled “Working parents are key to COVID-19 recovery.” Additionally, this fact sheet highlights other variables that include the race-ethnic breakdown, education attainment, and federal poverty breakdown for child-care dependent parents.

Public Perceptions Of Delays In The Release Of Police Body-Worn Camera Footage, Christopher L. Bush

Journal of Sustainable Social Impact

Delays in the release of police body-worn camera (BWC) video footage have amplified public concerns about police misconduct. People question law enforcement transparency when video from BWCs is not shared with the community in a timely manner. The qualitative case study explores the life experiences of the community and the victims’ family related to delays in the release of police BWC footage. Mettler and Sorelle’s policy feedback theory was used for the study’s theoretical framework. The research questions focus on understanding the lived experiences and perceptions of community relationships with law enforcement around transparency, communication, and information sharing. A qualitative …

Covid-19: Housing Hardship Index, Yanneli Llamas, Madison Frazee-Bench, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Housing & Real Estate

This fact sheet highlights the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on May 2020 unemployment rates and mortgage delinquencies in the Mountain West: Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. This synthesis is based on nationwide data originally reported by Bankrate senior mortgage reporter Jeff Ostrowski in “Housing Hardship Index: Coronavirus crushes some state economies, spares others.”

Organizational Socialization, Martin Hall, Megan Paul

Umbrella Summaries

What is organizational socialization?

Organizational socialization—also referred to as onboarding—is “…the process by which newcomers make the transition from being organizational outsiders to being insiders” (Bauer, Bodner, Erdogan, Truxillo, & Tucker, 2007, p. 707). The overall goal of organizational socialization is to facilitate newcomer adjustment (Bauer & Erdogan, 2011). Specifically, adjustment means that new employees understand the key tasks of their job (i.e., role clarity), have confidence in their ability to perform the key tasks of their job (i.e., self-efficacy), feel like they are an accepted member of the organization (i.e., social acceptance), and understand the organization’s culture (e.g., goals, …

Review Of New Technologies And Methodologies For Eore In Challenging Contexts, Gichd

Global CWD Repository

This review examines promising new technologies and methodologies used for the delivery and monitoring of risk education interventions in response to three key challenges: risk education for improvised explosive devices, in urban complex environments, and in areas with limited to no accessibility. It highlights examples, good practices and emerging solutions in facing these challenges, both from within and outside the EORE sector, and builds on recent initiatives developed to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic. The publication was made possible thanks to the financial support of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Government of Switzerland.