American University - Washington, D.C.
School of Public Affairs
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See PERG's blog posts below:
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Read MoreAugust 7
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Race Specific Policy Feedback from HUD Housing Programs
By Austin Johnson
With strong support from both American political parties, housing programs have become a permanent fixture in the landscape of U.S. public policy. There appears to be essentially no push-back from any influence peddlers on Capitol Hill, aside from the occasional budget wonk. And after looking outside the beltway, numerous activities become quickly apparent: real estate markets have adapted to these programs with glee, Wall Street is undoubtedly securitizing more of the underlying assets (as you read this), and average Americans are attempting to leverage these programs to seize their share of the American Dream. There is simply a lot of warmth for housing programs in America...
Read MoreHaving a Same-Race Teacher May Only Help in Rich School Districts
By Kristen Carroll
Sustaining public education funding has been a consistent concern in the United States. Much of this concern stems from an education funding formula that is strongly dependent on local property taxes. Although both state and federal taxes are used to account for the differences in funding across districts, this funding is never guaranteed. And each year school districts may be at the mercy of federal or state funding cuts to public education. Given the differences in school districts and the various challenges these funding resources create, there are increasing inequalities present in schools...
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Promoting Gender Equity in Education
By Miyeon Song
Despite women’s increased educational attainment and labor market participation, they are still socially disadvantaged. In the private labor market, women earn significantly less than men and experience narrower career opportunities in the workplace. The glass ceiling also exists in public employment, and women are significantly underrepresented in the upper-levels positions in government. Figure 1 shows that, on average, women make up less than one third (31.2%) of management roles across OECD countries. Gender inequality exists in most countries, however, women in Asian countries tend to have a higher level of gender inequality due to the hierarchical social structures and cultures...
Read MoreSocial Capital and Immigrant Threat shape American State Welfare Provisions
By Austin McCrea
The United States has undergone significant population change in the last century. As a result of this, some communities are becoming increasingly diverse and have to make public policy decisions with a heterogeneous community in mind. One salient policy area in the debate about race and demographic change is social welfare... Welfare reform allowed states to exercise significant discretion in welfare decisions, including eligibility and benefit levels. Existing research finds that states with larger minority populations led to more punitive welfare eligibility requirements and lower cash benefits. For this study, we examine the case of immigrant welfare...
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