Pardee RAND News & Events

Pardee RAND Graduate School students, alumni, and faculty are often in the news, writing blogs, publishing research, speaking at events, and more. Other pages (student blog posts, alumni news, faculty blog posts, featured research) provide filtered views of Pardee RAND news and announcements; here we present a complete compilation of ALL the news that's fit to share.

  • Statement from the Dean on Racial Injustice

    The call for social justice that has swept across our nation and the world over this past week demands that we listen, learn, and do more to “shine the light that reveals the dust” and to do the hard work of building a better world not just this week but for years to come. It is my fervent hope that our community will rise to the occasion and live up to our motto, Be the Answer.

  • Coronavirus shown against world map and trend lines, illustration by chakisatelier/Adobe Stock

    Responding to COVID-19 with Research and Analysis

    Members of the Pardee RAND community are actively contributing to the COVID-19 response by sharing their expertise and searching for solutions to coronavirus-related challenges on local, state, national, and global levels.

  • Group of people with their hands on top of one another, photo by PeopleImages/Getty Images

    Student Helps Evaluate the WhyWeRise Mental Health Campaign

    Apr 1, 2020

    Rebecca de Guttry (cohort '18) conducted interviews and analyzed a survey to evaluate WhyWeRise, a community engagement mental health campaign. The research indicates that the campaign reached at least 30 percent of Los Angeles County youth and mobilized them to improve social support for those experiencing mental health challenges.

  • An empty market after a curfew was imposed to halt the spread of COVID-19 in the holy city of Najaf, Iraq, March 18, 2020

    Prof Considers Economic Consequences of COVID-19 in the Middle East, Implications for U.S. National Security

    Apr 1, 2020

    The global COVID-19 pandemic will have a dramatic impact on economies across the globe, but the Middle East may be particularly affected given the simultaneous fall in oil prices, writes Prof. Howard Shatz. The economic consequences of this pandemic are also likely to affect U.S. interests in the region.

  • A worker checks part of a delivery of hospital beds to The Mount Sinai Hospital during the COVID-19 outbreak, New York City, March 31, 2020, photo by Andrew Kelly/Reuters

    Prof: Implement Critical Care Surge Strategies Now to Save Lives

    Apr 1, 2020

    As COVID-19 continues to spread, hospitals are bracing for a surge of patients requiring critical care. To meet the demand, Prof. Christopher Nelson says U.S. health care facilities may need to fundamentally change the way they allocate space, staff, and equipment.

  • Coronavirus and financial stock market crisis, illustration by denisismagilov/Adobe Stock

    Alum Estimates Economic Benefits of California's Stay-at-Home Policy

    Apr 1, 2020

    Joe Nation (cohort '85), a professor of the practice of public policy at Stanford University, calculated the net cost of the state's stay-at-home order. "National and state leaders who claim to be putting the economy first are in fact putting it last. Saving lives also saves the economy," he found.

  • The U.S. Navy hospital ship Comfort passes the Statue of Liberty as it enters New York Harbor during the COVID-19 outbreak, March 30, 2020, photo by Mike Segar/Reuters

    Prof: After COVID-19, America Needs to Reengage with the World, Not Retreat

    Apr 1, 2020

    The COVID-19 pandemic should lead to a further strengthening of the national and international response capacity, writes Prof. Krishna Kumar. The alternative of erecting barriers and closing America off to the world would leave it more vulnerable to the next big shock.

  • Children pick up lunch at the Olympic Hills Elementary School, after schools were closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak, in Seattle, Washington, March 17, 2020, photo by Brian Snyder/Reuters

    Profs Examine Food Access Challenges and Solutions Brought on by COVID-19

    Mar 31, 2020

    For the 14.3 million American households already experiencing food insecurity, COVID-19 shutdowns and restrictions have created new layers of hardship, write professors Tamara Dubowitz and Andrea Richardson. Tremendous efforts are already underway to make sure the food insecure aren't forgotten in the midst of so much other disruption. But the weeks to come will surely demand more creative solutions from the public and private sectors, particularly for the most vulnerable in our communities.

  • Alum, Student Examine Software Acquisition Workforce Initiative for the Department of Defense

    Mar 31, 2020

    The U.S. Department of Defense seeks to advance the ability of its software acquisition workforce to rapidly and reliably deliver complex software-dependent capabilities. Bonnie Triezenberg (cohort '14) and Lindsey Polley ('16) ask, what competencies are needed for an effective software acquisition workforce?

  • Cyber warfare specialists engage in weekend training at Warfield Air National Guard Base in Middle River, Maryland, June 3, 2017, photo by J.M. Eddins Jr./U.S. Air Force

    Student: Defense Industrial Base Needs a Cyber Protection Program

    Mar 30, 2020

    The unclassified networks of defense industrial base firms have become a target for adversaries seeking to steal sensitive data, trade secrets, and intellectual property. Student Lindsey Polley (cohort '16) and RAND colleagues examine how the U.S. Department of Defense can better secure these networks.

  • An employee checks the temperature of a man at the entrance of a supermarket, as the spread of COVID-19 continues, Milan, Italy March 23, 2020, photo by Daniele Mascolo/Reuters

    Alum Shares Lessons from Italy’s Response to Coronavirus

    Mar 30, 2020

    Alum Michele Zanini (cohort '96) coauthored a Harvard Business Review article "to help U.S. and European policymakers at all levels learn from Italy’s mistakes so they can recognize and address the unprecedented challenges presented by the rapidly expanding crisis."

  • Quarterly Newsletter Highlights Golden Anniversary

    Mar 27, 2020

    Pardee RAND is proud of its 50 years of policy impact, as well as its research contributions to the current coronavirus crisis. The school's newsletter features updates on how the school is responding to current challenges, cool student and alumni research trips to Alaska and Antarctica, and an exciting student research showcase, among other news.

  • Man stands inside of old dark tunnel, photo by evannovostro/Adobe Stock

    Alum: A Few Hints of Light at the End of the Tunnel

    Mar 27, 2020

    Alum Loren Yager (cohort '87) writes, "There is no question that this is a world-changing event and that all the social distancing and other preparatory measures need to be taken as quickly and seriously as possible. But at the same time, we also need to see that there are some faint reasons for hope as we try to come to grips with the need to hunker down for months in our homes."

  • A Marine fires a Javelin during Operation Lava Viper at Pohakuloa Training Area, Hawaii, May 27, 2015, photo by Cpl. Ricky Gomez/U.S. Marine Corps

    Alum: FY21 USMC Budget Indicates Institutional Inertia

    Mar 26, 2020

    The Grim Reaper is a 700 foot tall series of hills at Camp Pendleton that Marine recruits must summit to graduate from boot camp, writes alum Jon Wong (cohort '12). As the Marine Corps attempts to transform itself from a second land army and counterinsurgency force to operate within contested maritime spaces, the recently released FY21 budget request suggests that it will need to climb its own Grim Reaper to get there.

  • U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer meet with Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin to wrap up work on coronavirus economic aid legislation, Washington, D.C., March 20, 2020, photo by Mary F. Calvert/Reuters

    The Economic Wallop of COVID-19: Q&A with Faculty Experts

    Mar 26, 2020

    As Washington continues to weigh economic responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, here are insights from Pardee RAND professors Jennifer Kavanagh, Debra Knopman, Krishna Kumar, and Howard Shatz on how aid money might be best allocated, how this crisis compares to the 2008 recession, what business communities can do right now, and more.

  • Virtual Preview Day Welcomes Admitted Students

    Mar 24, 2020

    In lieu of the normal in-person Preview Weekend, Pardee RAND hosted a Virtual Preview Day on Friday. More than three-fourths of our admitted students attended from locations around the world, as did many current students, staff, and faculty. With video sharing and real-time Q&A sessions, it was a rousing success.

  • Millennial couple video chatting, photo by Rocketclips/Adobe Stock

    Alum: Social Distancing Could Ultimately Teach Us How to Be Less Lonely

    Mar 23, 2020

    Alum Arthur Brooks (cohort '96) writes, "While public health officials are no doubt correct that social distancing is necessary, as a social scientist I would add that it is a necessary evil. Enormous amounts of scholarship have shown that social connectedness is central to well-being and good mental health."

  • A man wears a mask while walking past the New York Stock Exchange in New York City, March 17, 2020, photo by Lucas Jackson/Reuters

    The Social Distancing Economy: Q&A with Pardee RAND Faculty and RAND Experts

    Mar 18, 2020

    Congress and the White House are weighing economic policies to help people acutely affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Here are insights from Pardee RAND professors Kathryn Edwards, Debra Knopman, Krishna Kumar, Benjamin Miller, Howard Shatz, and Jonathan Welburn on what might be effective in terms of fiscal policy, stimulus spending, and emergency relief to affected workers.

  • TNL Workshop Explores Learning via Improv

    Mar 18, 2020

    At a Tech & Narrative Lab-sponsored workshop on March 10, students learned that improv isn't just about comedy; it is about how to deal with uncertainty and improve your ability to convey information.

  • A man wearing a face mask looks at his phone at Dulles International Airport in Dulles, Virginia, March 12, 2020, photo by Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

    Truth Decay in the Coronavirus Moment: Q&A with Prof. Jennifer Kavanagh

    Mar 17, 2020

    Prof. Jennifer Kavanagh, who wrote the RAND book Truth Decay about the diminishing role that facts play in making important public policy decisions, calls the unfolding situation with the novel coronavirus and COVID-19 a worst-case scenario.

  • Student Examines How Coast Guard Can Leverage Social Media and Enhanced Cell Phone Data to Improve Emergency Response

    Mar 17, 2020

    A growing proportion of maritime distress calls to the U.S. Coast Guard comes indirectly through social media, 911, or cell phones. Student Sohaela Amiri (cohort '16) and colleagues suggest that better understanding of the social media and cell phone environments could help inform future Department of Homeland Security policy on using these media in response operations.

  • Distinguished Visitor Strongin Presents Lecture Series

    Mar 17, 2020

    Goldman Sachs partner Steve Strongin enlightened and enlivened Pardee RAND as a Distinguished Visitor-in-Residence from January 27 through March 12. Strongin is head of Goldman's Global Investment Research division, which provides original, fundamental insights and analysis for clients in the equity, fixed income, currency and commodities markets.