Public Policy Commons^™

The Effect Of Teacher Race On Student Perceptions In Low-Income Schools, Benton M. Brown

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In the wake of the Brown v. Board of Education (1954) decision, thousands of teachers of color lost their jobs as black students were integrated into mostly white schools. The number of black teachers in schools across the United States has never recovered resulting in a teaching workforce that is less diverse than the student population that they teach. Many studies have examined the possible impact of this discrepancy including the possibility that this has contributed to the black-white achievement gap that exists in the United States. Other studies have examined the non-academic impacts of a less diverse workforce including …

Editor’S Note, Padraig O’Malley

New England Journal of Public Policy

I have known Marcy Murninghan since the early 1980s when she worked for the late Robert Wood, once president of the University of Massachusetts system, then superintendent of Boston Public Schools during the heyday of court-ordered desegregation. During this tumultuous period in Boston’s history, Murninghan played a significant role, tasked by Wood to plan and direct the structural reorganization of the department.

Since then her career has taken many turns. She has churned out a plethora of reports and analyses for foundations, universities, the corporate world, and media monoliths. The result is a formidable body of work, from which the …

Public Program Evaluation In Health Economics : An Empirical Study, Linna Xu

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This dissertation consists of three essays on public program evaluation in health economics. This dissertation explores the estimation of treatment effects of public programs on risky behaviors, health insurance status, labor market outcomes or other health-related outcomes among adolescents or young adults and addresses causality inferences based on empirical modeling, analysis and applications. The first chapter in this dissertation identifies the causal treatment effects of keg registration laws on underage alcohol consumption and related outcomes: alcohol-related traffic fatalities, by exploiting the substantial variations in the timing of the introduction of these laws across different states at different times. Using the …

Zero Textbook Cost Syllabus For Lib 3040 (Information And Society), Kimmy Szeto

Open Educational Resources

LIB 3040 Information and Society. 3 hours; 3 credits. Prerequisite: ENG 2100. This course examines the nature, production, value and uses of information in historical perspective; the latest development in information technology; the ways information is produced and disseminated and how they affect business, politics, media, science, arts and culture; the growth of the “information society;” and major information policy issues. (Cross-listed with COM 3040 and PAF 3040)

Engineers' Motivation To Influence Public Decision Making: A Grounded Theory Approach, Sarah Bouazzaoui, Charles B. Daniels

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

In the United States of America, public policies and public decision making associated with the engineering field are set by individuals who does not possess expertise and knowledge to carry out these tasks [1]. Most of decision makers are lawyers and social scientists, not engineers [2]. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the various factors which either encourage or inhibit engineers from influencing and participating in public policy. In this study, a grounded theory approach will be followed, data will be collected using semi-structured interviews and analyzed to develop a theory of research direct toward increasing the motivation …

An Assessment Of The Sharing Economy And Its Policy Solutions Through The Lens Of Sustainability, Chloe An

Pomona Senior Theses

This senior thesis in environmental analysis explores the promise of sustainability of the sharing economy, its shortcomings from this positive potential, and possible policy solutions to help it reach its fullest, positive potential. At its core, the sharing economy enables shared access to goods and services that would otherwise sit in idle or underutilized capacity – popular platforms such as Uber, Lyft, Airbnb, and craigslist all fall within the sharing economy. By enabling affordable and convenient access to goods that would otherwise sit idle, the sharing economy encourages maximal use of a good that already exists rather than seeking out …

Developing Ecological Citizenship: The Role Of Political Agents Using Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model, Teresa Victoria Grabs

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite decades of research on environmental behavior, it is unknown how various political actors aid in the development of ecological citizenship (EC). The purpose of this correlational study was to determine the relationship between environmental worldview (NEP) and willingness to take action (WTTA) among political actors within 5 states: Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, and North Dakota. The overarching research question examined how EC can be increased within the 5-state region by identifying the similarities and differences in NEP and WTTA between state legislators, state partners, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Bronfenbrenner's bioecological model provided the theoretical framework for the study. …

Article Critique: “Shifting Winds: Explaining Variation In State Policies To Promote Small-Scale Wind Energy”, Luke Eastin

The Eastern Illinois University Political Science Review

This paper is a review of Tomas Koontz and Joshua Wiener's case study analysis that considered the extent of variance among three states in regard to their particular small-scale wind energy policies. Through this critique, the author provides both the benefits and difficulties with the research, along with the future prospects for research in this area of policy studies.

El Análisis De Políticas Públicas: La Evolución De Una Disciplina Y Su Relevancia En Colombia, Carlos Andres Olaya

Gobernar: The Journal of Latin American Public Policy and Governance

For several decades, the so-called public policy turn has become more relevant in the context of Latin America in general, and Colombia in particular. Both in the political and academic spheres, research projects or intervention have been put forward which, directly or indirectly, relate to a vague and general notion of "public policy." However, the advances in the specific field of the policy theory are timid. Therefore, it is necessary to deepen and energize the proper disciplinary debates of public policy, beyond the study of any policy in particular. Thus, this article explores the historical development of policy studies as …

Identificando A Los Protagonistas: El Mapeo De Actores Como Herramienta Para El Diseño Y Análisis De Políticas Públicas., Santiago Silva Jaramillo

Gobernar: The Journal of Latin American Public Policy and Governance

This article reviews a few experiences of using stakeholders analysis to complement analysis efforts and public policy design. From this approach, the article studies three alternatives to a qualitative approach of stakeholders mapping as a tool for: understanding public problems in complex social environments, formulating public policy with sensitivity to social context, and developing public policy evaluations from a pluralistic approach. This text begins by proposing a theoretical framework from which one can understand the mapping and analysis of stakeholders from a public policy approach; then, it describes the three mapping experiences, and finally presents its conclusions in the form …

Editor's Note, Padraig O’Malley

New England Journal of Public Policy

Such is the unpredictability of Trump’s streaming executive orders that much of what I write may be irrelevant by the time this issue of the New England Journal of Public Policy goes to press. But the articles in this issue will not lose their pertinence, no matter what the administration does. Indeed, given its predilection for “alternative facts,” they assume a greater relevance and consequential significance.

This issue of the journal has three parts. The first part had its origins in a conference on extremism held at the Center for Study of Intractable Conflicts (CRIC), Harris Manchester College Oxford in …

Law-Based Arguments And Messages To Advocate For Later School Start Time Policies In The United States, Clark J. Lee, Dennis M. Nolan, Steven W. Lockley, Brent Pattison

Homeland Security Publications

The increasing scientific evidence that early school start times are harmful to the health and safety of teenagers has generated much recent debate about changing school start times policies for adolescent students. Although efforts to promote and implement such changes have proliferated in the United States in recent years, they have rarely been supported by law-based arguments and messages that leverage the existing legal infrastructure regulating public education and child welfare in the United States. Furthermore, the legal bases to support or resist such changes have not been explored in detail to date. This article provides an overview of how …

Beliefs, Costs, And Policies Influencing African American Men's Decisions On Psa Screening, Mary Frances Carter

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite the growing concerns about routine prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening in men, little is known about the societal and economic impact of screening among the African American population. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore beliefs among African American men about PSA screening, funding for screening, and the role of the United States Preventive Service Task Force in addressing the problem. Guided by rational choice theory, data collection consisted of completion of a health beliefs survey, face-to-face interviews, field notes taken during interview, and interview audio recording. The population for the study included African American men residing …

Class Roots: The Genesis Of The Ontario Class Proceedings Act, 1966 - 1993, Suzanne Erica Chiodo

LLM Theses

Nearly 25 years since its passage, the Ontario Class Proceedings Act has become one of the most frequently debated procedural mechanisms of its kind. The CPA came about following the release of the Attorney Generals Advisory Committee (AGAC) Report in 1990. None of the current narratives explain how this Report pulled together so many divergent interests where previous attempts had failed. My thesis answers this question with reference to the historical sources and the legal, political and social changes that took place throughout this period.

This thesis also highlights the unique nature of the AGAC consultation process, which saw the …

The Calgets Story: The Impact Of 5 Years Of State-Funded Treatment, Timothy W. Fong, Terri Sue Canale-Dalman, Michael Campos, Richard Rosenthal, Rory Reid, Brett Abarbanel

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

This presentation will review the history, development and current state-funded treatment programs offered in California. Treatment outcome data from 5 years of operations will be reviewed highlighting the impact that treatment has had on gambling disorder and affected individuals. Clinical characteristics and predictors of treatment success and treatment failures from both residential treatment and outpatient treatment settings will be presented. This presentation will also describe the pitfalls, successes and lessons learned in creating a statewide treatment program that will help in inform and educate any policy maker, administrator, healthcare provider or legislator who is responsible for creating and delivering government-sponsored …

The Unmaking Of An Embargo: How Policy Entrepreneurs At The Individual, State, And National Levels Are Creating New Paths For Policy Change In Modern United States-Cuba Relations, Kyle C. Griffith

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Throughout the Cold War antagonisms of the twentieth century, the United States (US) championed greater global economic cooperation and an embrace of free market principles to encourage economic growth. Post World War II, passage of the Bretton Woods Agreement institutionalized this political agenda effectively establishing the rules of global commerce. The result has been increased economic participation and trade liberalization. One of the last remaining vestiges of Cold War hostility and impediments to trade is the US economic embargo of Cuba, in place since 1960. Increasingly seen as a policy failure, the US has taken steps in the past two …

Capstone Summary Report, Kayla Blais

Muskie School Capstones and Dissertations

Leadership is vital to the practice of public health. The following review of current literature delves into present understanding of leaders that the public health field needs. As leadership within public health is being explored, specific skills required of future leaders, different types of leaders, and the impacts we can expect to see are being defined.

Agenda: A Celebration Of The Work Of Charles Wilkinson: Served With Tasty Stories And Some Slices Of Roast, University Of Colorado Boulder. Getches-Wilkinson Center For Natural Resources, Energy, And The Environment

A Celebration of the Work of Charles Wilkinson (Martz Winter Symposium, March 10-11)

Conference held at the University of Colorado, Wolf Law Building, Wittemyer Courtroom, Thursday, March 10th and Friday, March 11th, 2016.

Conference moderators, panelists and speakers included University of Colorado Law School professors Phil Weiser, Sarah Krakoff, William Boyd, Kristen Carpenter, Britt Banks, Harold Bruff, Richard Collins, Carla Fredericks, Mark Squillace, and Charles Wilkinson

"We celebrate the work of Distinguished Professor Charles Wilkinson, a prolific and passionate writer, teacher, and advocate for the people and places of the West. Charles's influence extends beyond place, yet his work has always originated in a deep love of and commitment to particular places. We …

Editor's Note, Padraig O’Malley

New England Journal of Public Policy

Along with two literary essays, the articles in this issue of the journal address local, national, and international public policy questions. On the literary level, one article discusses whether arguments from an older era over a white writer’s presumption that he can accurately articulate black voices and experiences, itself an unconscious bias, can throw light on racial issues roiling college campuses and other arenas of public discourse today; the second, more mellow and reflective, ponders the incongruities and congruities that surface when the author explores how the meaning of the word home depends on one’s personality as he prepares to …

Comparison Excluding Commitments: Incommensurability, Adjudication, And The Unnoticed Example Of Trade Disputes, Sungjoon Cho, Richard Warner

All Faculty Scholarship

We claim that there are important cases of “incommensurability” in public policymaking, in which all relevant reasons are not always comparable on a common scale as better, worse, or equally good. Courts often fail to confront this. We are by no means the first to contend that incommensurability exists. Yet incommensurability’s proponents have failed to sway the courts mainly because they overlook the fact that there are two types of incommensurability. The first (“incompleteness incommensurability”) consists of the lack of any appropriate metric for making the comparison. We argue that this type of incommensurability is relatively unproblematic in that courts …

The Influence Of Public Policy Interventions On Millennial Distracted Driving Behavior, Karen Anne Versuk

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite recent public policy initiatives limiting or banning forms of distracted driving resultant from cellular phone use, crashes remain on the rise. Individuals from the millennial generation, ages 16 to 35, appear to be most susceptible to distracted driving. Understanding the behaviors, attitudes, and habits of millennials is critical to developing effective policy for behavior change. A dual task ethnographic study framed by Skinner's theory of behavior modification and Maslow's hierarchy of needs motivational model, was used to investigate to what extent millennials feel public policy has influenced their driving, and if additional policy initiatives are required to deter distracted …

Food Policy: Urban Farming As A Supplemental Food Source, Bessie Didomenica, Mark Gordon

Journal of Sustainable Social Impact

Food policy has a unique role for public, nonprofit, private, and academic stakeholders. Growing food in the city is a challenge worldwide. Food systems can be destroyed by external (weather extremes) and internal (zoning regulations) forces. This study explores urban farms as a secondary food source and their common themes across four sectors. A Northeastern U.S. city was the case study to examine how it implemented its formal urban agriculture program. The positive social change implications of urban farms include greater food visibility and food access in low-income areas and more consumer awareness about growing fresh food. This study contributes …

Implementation Procedures For Puerto Rico's Environmental Laws, Sara Enid Camerón

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In 2004, Puerto Rico's new environmental legislation became part of the penal code with the intention of protecting the island nation's natural resources through criminal prosecution. However, the problem is a dearth of information about the prosecutions of environmental crimes and the law enforcement agent's implementation practices. The purpose of this study was to describe the execution of the law and the few cases prosecuted. Lipsky and Hull and Hjern's theory of implementation were used to help answer the research question: What are the implementation procedures of law enforcement agents on Puerto Rico's environmental crimes law, and what can be …

A Comparative Case Study Of Georgia Delegations At The 2012 National Party Conventions, Carolyn S. Carlson, Jeff R. Dewitt, Kerwin Swint

Georgia Journal of Public Policy

From August 26 to September 8, nine political science students and four supervising faculty traveled from Kennesaw State University to the 2012 Republican National Convention and the Democratic National Convention as part of special topics course on a course titled “Party Conventions Field Study”. While in Tampa and Charlotte, the students and faculty immersed themselves in a “real world” educational environment and in doing so gained extraordinary first-hand exposure to a fundamental, yet not well understood, part of the American political process. Students directly engaged with convention proceedings and participants, primarily the Georgia state party delegations, and implemented pre-approved research …

Touched By Fire: Readings In Time Of War (1991), Shaun O’Connell

New England Journal of Public Policy

In "Touched by Fire: Readings in Times of War," Shaun O'Connell draws us into the eerie atmosphere that pulled this country into itself in the late fall and early winter, when thoughts of war provoked hard questions and when, for a time, doubt became the stuff of eloquence.

The works discussed in this article include: Pledging Allegiance: The Last Campaign of the Cold War, by Sidney Blumenthal; Millie's Book, as dictated to Barbara Bush; An American Life, by Ronald Reagan; The Civil War: An Illustrated History, by Geoffrey C. Ward with Ric Burns and Ken Burns; …

Editor's Note, Padraig O’Malley

New England Journal of Public Policy

In this edition of the journal several articles address a range of important, and in some cases too often overlooked policy issues, too broad in scope for their conclusions and recommendations to be encapsulated adequately in a brief paragraph. Their diversity, however, highlights a key characteristic of the New England Journal of Public Policy – that of being open to publishing articles that have insightful bearings on how public policy is addressed, not only in the New England states, but throughout the country and in the international community – a community of nations increasingly interdependent with constraints on national sovereignty …

The Rhetoric Of Ben Bernanke: A Grounded Theory Approach, Andrew Langellier

Honors Projects in Communication

The objective of this Capstone project is to determine how Ben Bernanke used rhetoric during his tenure as Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System from 2006 to 2013. The scope is limited to testimony delivered as opening statements to the Federal Reserve’s semi-annual Monetary Policy Report to Congress and his prepared testimony during his Senate confirmation hearing. The research will attempt determine how Bernanke used rhetoric while testifying before congress, in particular how that rhetoric changes over the course of his tenure. While there is a substantial amount of research on the use of the …

Multilevel Marketing Diffusion And The Risk Of Pyramid Scheme Activity: The Case Of Fortune Hi‐Tech Marketing In Montana, Stacie A. Bosley, Kim Mckeage

School of Business All Faculty Scholarship

While statisticians have simulated the expected rate of growth in pyramid schemes, this research examines actual data on the spread of an alleged pyramid scheme in Montana. Fortune Hi-Tech Marketing (FHTM) was a multilevel marketing firm, sued by six states and the Federal Trade Commission and permanently shut down in 2014. Data from a settlement with the State of Montana provide a population of participants in a geographic region with definable markets and offer unique insights into local contagion. The authors analyze the pattern of FHTM adoption within a diffusion-of-innovation framework. The findings confirm that nearly all adoption results from …

Food Policy: Urban Farming As A Supplemental Food Source, Bessie Didomenica

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The distance between farms and cities and the limited access that some residents have to fresh foods can be detrimental to a city's capacity to feed people over time. This study addressed the under-studied topic of urban farming as a secondary food source, specifically by exploring the opportunities and limitations of urban farming in a large Northeastern city. Brundtland's food policy was the pivotal theory supporting food production to end global starvation, and was the link between environmental conservation and human survival. The research question for this study examined the potential food policy opportunities and limitations that assist urban farms …

Twelve Years Later: Afghan Humanitarian Aid Workers On War On Terror, Emmanuel C. Ogwude

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

Using narrative research study founded in social constructionism, I explored the lived experiences of thirty Afghan humanitarian aid workers in Kabul, Afghanistan, to discover how they experienced the war on terror. Ten participants were individually interviewed and their stories, personal experiences, perceptions, and voices have been presented in this study. I also facilitated a focus group of twenty Afghan NGO directors, and their views are echoed in the study. The participants represented a diversity of different humanitarian service specialties that cater to Afghan individuals, communities, and government agencies in areas such as education, human rights and good governance, food and …