Public Policy Commons^™

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.

A Return To State-Led Integrated Regional Planning? Emerging Approaches From Three U.S. States, Timothy Green, Donovan Finn

School of Marine & Atmospheric Sciences Faculty Publications

After decades of neglect, several U.S. states have increased support for regional development planning, creating new programs, organizations, and funding streams to support it. Analysis of programs in three states (New York, Michigan, and Indiana) shows similarities among them as well as contrasts with prior episodes of state-led regional planning. The new programs deliberately sidestep older regional planning organizations like COGs and RPCs in favor of new organizations with larger roles for the private sector and greater access to public funds. The resulting plans focus on individual projects within a pro-development agenda, but still have potential to coordinate action at …

The Aaacf Community Scholarship Program: A Strategic Approach To Building Community, Shelley Strickland, Carmen M. Mccallum

The Foundation Review

Five years ago, the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation decided to take a strategic approach to offering college scholarships that would address gaps in educational achievement among local students. To increase the impact of its scholarship program, the foundation shifted its emphasis from one-time awards to promoting degree attainment, and determined that the criteria for new scholarships would be based on impact data instead of donor intent.

The Community Scholarship Program awards multiyear scholarships to local students of color, students from low-income families, and first-generation college students, and provides them with a dedicated college success coach to help them successfully …

Front Matter

The Foundation Review

No abstract provided.