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.
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.

Local Communities Need a Voice in How to 'Build Back Better'
Jan 12, 2021

Long before it was popularized and made its way into political slogans and economic recovery battle cries, the phrase “building back better” was a central tenet of disaster recovery and community resilience. Max Izenberg (cohort '18) asks, how should community voices be incorporated into “building back better” processes?
Previous Disasters Provide Important Lessons for Central America's Recovery from Hurricanes
Jan 11, 2021

As the global community works together to assist Central America in recovering from the disastrous 2020 hurricane season, alum David Groves (cohort '01) and colleagues write, experiences from other recent disaster recovery efforts offer some helpful lessons both for the governments of the region as well as outsiders providing resources and support.
Bad Idea: Overly Focusing on Development and Acquisition Speed
Dec 16, 2020

The Pentagon has in recent years turned its attention to the need for speed in weapons system development and acquisition. Alum Jon Wong (cohort '12) writes that, while shortening the timeline for program development and fielding is important for Defense Department acquisition leaders, overly prioritizing speed can lead to issues with program management, sustainment, and other areas.
Despite Its Challenges, Remote Learning Is Here to Stay
Dec 15, 2020

School district leaders are concerned about students' unequal opportunities to learn during the pandemic, students' social and emotional learning needs, and insufficient funding to cover staff, according to Melissa Diliberti (cohort '19) and her coauthors. Still, about two in ten leaders still anticipate that a fully remote learning option will become a permanent public school offering.
Preparing Children for Civic Life in the Era of Truth Decay
Dec 8, 2020

To restore the role of facts in public life, it's important for America's youth to develop strong civic skills. Lynn Hu (cohort '19) and colleagues find that students can build these skills in the classroom, but teachers need better resources and more support to help them do it.
For These Alumnae, Games Are Hard Work
Dec 1, 2020

Games are more than just theoretical to alumnae Ellie Bartels (cohort '15), Claire O'Hanlon ('13), and Yuna Wong ('00). Bartels is the new director of the RAND Center for Gaming, O'Hanlon recently launched an online version of her card game ControVersus, and Wong helped create RAND's first publicly available board game, Hedgemony.
Disaster Reporting and Its Impacts on Policy and Inequities
Nov 16, 2020

Disaster news tropes may capture audiences' attention to news sites, feeds, and networks, but they ultimately frustrate progress in mitigating the short-term and long-term effects of disasters on communities. Faculty Leaders Program alum Shearon Roberts argues that it's more important than ever that news stories about disasters in the time of a pandemic frame the impacts of environmental phenomena in meaningful ways.
This School Year Could Be Another Casualty of the Pandemic
Nov 16, 2020

Most U.S. schools are providing either fully remote or hybrid instruction as the pandemic continues to limit students' learning. Melissa Diliberti (cohort '19) finds that students are less prepared for grade-level work and those from vulnerable populations are most at risk of falling behind. Some 80 percent of teachers report burnout.
Another Record-Breaking Fire Season Shows the Need for a Comprehensive Strategy
Nov 6, 2020

Year after year, fires across western U.S. states scorch forests, rangeland, and neighborhoods, wreaking havoc on rural economies and pushing smoke into cities. Jay Balagna (cohort '20), a former wildland firefighter, suggests that policymakers consider a coordinated and comprehensive effort that brings together the best minds in government, communities, and academia.
Externships Start in Sitka and Los Angeles
Oct 30, 2020

This August, Pardee RAND launched the first pilots of our community-partnered externships — virtually in Los Angeles and in-person in Sitka, Alaska. Six students —three for each location—participated in the two partnerships.
How Can Green Infrastructure Help to Manage Rainfall in an Urban Watershed?
Oct 29, 2020

Cities across the United States are struggling to effectively manage stormwater. A study by Jordan Fischbach (cohort '04) and David Catt ('16) shows how the challenges of increasing volumes of stormwater in a complex urban environment can be addressed by a mix of solutions.
When Can Automated Vehicles Be Considered Safe Enough?
Oct 29, 2020

Establishing whether automated vehicles are acceptably safe is not straightforward, and continual technology development adds complication. Luke Irwin (cohort '16) helped to analyze the best approaches to assess AV safety and improve communication about safety, both of which are important for building and sustaining public trust.
Record-Breaking Cohort Begins Atypical Year
Oct 28, 2020

With 33 members, Cohort '20 is the largest class of new students in the school’s history, the first to be admitted to the school’s three new academic streams and enter the fully-redesigned program.
Managing Heavy Rainfall with Green Infrastructure
Oct 26, 2020

Alum Jordan Fischbach (cohort '04), student David Catt ('16) and colleagues evaluated Pittsburgh's Negley Run watershed to explore how eco-friendly stormwater infrastructure could reduce flooding and provide positive economic benefits in areas that face urgent flood risk.
Events, Activities Focus on Equity
Oct 14, 2020

Pardee RAND faculty, staff, and students organized numerous programs and workshops this summer and fall to raise awareness of inequity and explore policy solutions.
HSOAC Hosts Seminar Series on Improving Equity in Disaster Policy
Oct 7, 2020

Natural and biological hazards, and critically the human response to these hazards, have the potential not only to exacerbate existing population inequities but also to create them. To better understand the equity implications of disaster policies, the Homeland Security Operational Analysis Center invited several experts to share their knowledge. Max Izenberg (cohort '18) summarizes the event.
School Provides Students Coronavirus Emergency Relief Funding
Oct 1, 2020

The Pardee RAND Graduate School has been approved for $29,269 from the U.S. Department of Education for Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students.
How Russia Targets U.S. Elections
Oct 1, 2020

In this campaign season, Russia might try to manipulate U.S. voters through social media as it did in 2016, and new technologies have made these efforts easier. Russia's tactics aim to polarize Americans, create distrust, and paralyze the political process. Student Hilary Reininger ('16) and colleagues ask, what is the best defense against them?
Schools Weren't Prepared for a Crisis Like COVID-19
Sep 29, 2020

Before COVID-19, less than half of U.S. public schools had a written plan for dealing with a pandemic and only 38 states had publicly available school health emergency plans, according to research by Melissa Diliberti (cohort '19) and RAND colleagues. How did schools' preparation affect their transitions to remote learning and principals' confidence in student achievement?
Policy Streams Welcome New Leaders
Sep 24, 2020

The school hired Cynthia Gonzalez as the new director of our Community-Partnered Policy and Action academic stream and the Community Partner program; named Phil Armour director of the Research, Analysis, and Design stream; and hired staff for the Tech + Narrative Lab.

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