The School of Public Policy Research Day will highlight the cutting-edge research being conducted by policy faculty and students across a range of disciplines, including social policy, sustainability, climate change, community well-being and international policy. This event is designed to increase the visibility and impact of SPP research and promote collaboration. It offers a valuable opportunity for attendees to engage directly with researchers, learn more about their work, and enjoy lunch while networking.
The day will feature two key segments. Faculty and PhD students will present five-minute lightning talks covering a variety of current and emerging policy and management issues. Then following lunch, a master's and undergraduate student research showcase will provide an opportunity to explore student research, including work from master's project courses, undergraduate capstone projects and Thurgood Marshall fellows.
10:30-10:40 Opening Remarks: Lucy Qiu, Associate Dean for Research and Faculty Affairs
10:40-11:15 Community and Citizen Well-Being
- Stern Civic Engagement Research Lab Shanna Pearson-Merkowitz
- Developing a Framework for Wellbeing in the Context of Climate Mitigation Pathways Cam Wejnert-Depue
- Unions and Wellbeing: Why Joining Helps and Leaving Hurts Isabel Shaheen O'Malley
- “They Not Like Us”: Resident Sentiments and Solutions Identified in A Neighborhood Social Media Group Breana Stevens
- Credit Where It’s Due: The Political Origins of the Child Tax Credit Emily Elizabeth Dobson
11:15-11:50 Sustainability, Energy and Climate Change
- Climate Refugees: Where are we moving? Xiaofeng Ye
- Land Conversion Implications of Indonesia’s Food and Energy Security Policies Claire Squire
- Do Power Outages Impact Mental Health? Empirical Evidence from Maryland and Arizona Meng Feng
- Advancing Scenario-based Climate Modeling for CMIP7: The GCAM Consortium Approach Mel George
- Characterization and Determinants of Energy Poverty Disconnections Using Smart Meter Data Zheyu Zhang
11:50-12:25 Public Finance and Social Policy
- AI in Public Budgeting: From Academic Ideas to Practical Solutions Salman Yousuf Ul Alam
- How Well Does the Money Laundering Control System Work? Peter Reuter
- The Mobility Trap: Climate Shocks, Labor Sorting, and Wage Divergence Marcos Fabian
- Another Form of Unpaid Care Work? Examining Women and Men’s Community Volunteerism Nathan Dietz
- Can Wage-Subsidized Youth Training Reduce Violent Crime? Pablo D. Alcala
12:25-12:30 Concluding Remarks: Lucy Qiu
12:30-2:00 Lunch & Student Research Showcase
2:00 Awards Announced
Student Showcase Participants
- Mapping (Im)Mobility and Educational Access: Public Perceptions of Structural Barriers in Sub-Saharan Africa Marisha Addison
- Gender and Leadership at a Flagship University in the
Mid-Atlantic Region of the United States: A Conceptual Analysis of Institutional Culture and Barriers Ebenezer Akansah - Comparative Analysis and Process Evaluation of the Utah Independent Redistricting Commission Will Anderson
- Thriving, Struggling and Suffering: Perceptions of Government Control and Racial Differences in Wellbeing Onyekachukwu Arah
- Police Brutality and Racial Profiling of Roma in Central and Eastern Europe Maria Atanasova
- Reducing Food Waste Through Pantry-Based Education in Marginalized Communities: A Pilot Program with the LindaBen Foundation Elenor Aylay
- American Conservatism and the Biblical Foreigner: Examining the Relationship between Religious Identity and Political Ideology on Immigration Attitudes Lindsay Dieudonne
- Cultural Perceptions and Menstrual Health Education Kerra Dukes
- A Case Study Analysis of the ACEAC Great Lakes Peace Initiative (AGLPI) Valerie Graham
- Quantifying Climate Action: Assessing the Greenhouse Gas Impact of Maryland’s 2025 Clean Energy Bills Carleigh Haris
- Preserving Affordability: Analyzing the role of the 4% Low-Income Housing Tax Credit in the preservation of affordable housing Nadia Hewchuck
- Invisible Barriers: Lessons from Racial Bias in Facial Recognition and the Need for Gender Equity in Policing Allison Li
- How prisoner mental health access affects rates in recidivism in State Prisons Desmond Jordan
- From Prohibition to Legalization: Examining the Association Between Recreational Cannabis Legalization and Changes in Drug Seizure Rates Nicole Meza
- Water Conflict? Empirical Analysis of intrastate water cooperation between Non-state Actors Badradin Mohammed
- Chalked in Conflict: The Role of History Curriculums in Shaping Post-Conflict Narratives in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Rwanda Hana Nuhanovic
- The Cost of Inclusion: How Housing Policies and Market Forces Shape UMD’s Off-Campus Community Chinaza Ofor
- Navigating Inequities: Mortality Predictors in South Asian Hospital Patients Madiha Rehman
- From Capital to Control: The Billionaire Playbook for Policy Domination Christopher Sesay
- Understanding D.C.’s Mental Health Court: An Analysis of How It Operates and How it Compares to Other Mental Health Courts in the Greater Washington Area Ethan Simon
- Water Equity Insights: A Comparative Policy and Landscape Analysis of Data Accessibility, Policy Structures and Practices Christy Turner
- Afghan Warlord Recruitment Patterns Ava Zakikhani
- Executive Orders Under Judicial Scrutiny: The Role of Partisanship in Judicial Outcomes Matthew Zinno