Archive
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Examining the Impact of Minimum Wage and EITC on Criminal Recidivism
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Recidivism, a person’s relapse into criminal behavior, is a fundamental challenge in criminal justice. While the issue is widely discussed, few solutions have been shown to keep previous offenders from returning to criminal behavior. Part of the issue is the sheer scope of the problem: A 2005 study tracked approximately…
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Building Better Housing Vouchers Without Breaking the Bank
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The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Housing Choice Voucher Program (Section 8) is designed to help low-income families, as well as the elderly and disabled, cover the cost of “decent, safe, and sanitary housing.” Participants pay a fraction of their net household income for rent, with a…
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Preventing Opioid Abuse Through Mandatory Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs
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A new study suggests that mandatory physician-led monitoring of opioid prescriptions may be an important tool in the effort to combat opioid abuse. The opioid epidemic is an increasingly serious problem in the United States, with over 50,000 people killed by opioid overdoses in 2017. President Trump declared the crisis…
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What Are the Drivers of Anti-Immigration Sentiment?
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In Western countries, anti-immigration sentiment is becoming more and more widespread. In the United States, President Trump has issued executive orders imposing severe restrictions on arrivals, while in the European Union, the Syrian refugee crisis has sown division among member states. The free movement of persons may be at risk…
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China’s Belt and Road Initiative: International Trade’s Transportation Solution?
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Infrastructure projects are often seen as an important vehicle for economic growth. One of the largest ever attempts at such a project, China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), has allotted massive resources to building infrastructure. Costing an estimated one trillion U.S. dollars, the BRI includes major investments in thousands of…
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Food for Thought: SNAP Distribution and Student Achievement
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Decades of innovative education reform have focused on how to improve schools, yet academic success is about more than just classrooms and teachers. One factor that may affect student achievement is food stability; researchers and policymakers are asking how a student’s access to nutritional food impacts that student’s success in…
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How body cameras may result in a more proactive and community-engaged police force
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On October 5, 2018, Chicago Police Officer Jason Van Dyke was convicted of second degree murder and 16 counts of aggravated battery for the 2014 shooting of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald. While activists and Chicago community leaders have welcomed this conviction as an important step towards increasing police accountability, others have…
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What Happens After a School Closes?
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School closure can be a jarring process for students, families and communities. Over the past decade, school closures have become a lightning rod, sparking debate across the country. These closures raise several key questions, including where students go after a low-performing school closes and how students perform academically after their…
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A Snapshot of Attitudes Toward Body-Worn Cameras
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Public discontent with police behavior has crested in the wake of recent high-profile civilian deaths due to the excessive use of force. To address this issue, some have advocated the adoption of body-worn cameras (BWC) that officers wear as part of their uniforms. These cameras capture audio and video of…
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Mixed Messages Muddle Student Attitudes on Genetic Modification
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Genetically modified (GM) crops have been marketed and sold to the public since 1994. As an entire generation has grown up surrounded by genetically modified organisms (GMOs), attitudes towards modified foods have gradually trended towards a more favorable outlook. With more than 90 percent of crops such as corn and soybeans…
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How Does Vocational Education Impact Income Gaps?
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Education plays an important role in countering inequality, and education policy can be an efficient tool for policymakers to reduce income disparities. According to the Economic Policy Institute, on average, a family in the top one percent of the U.S. income distribution earned 26.3 times as much as a family…