News & Research

Winter and Spring MPP Essay Defenses

Amy Ewing, "How do Scientists Inform Permit Streamlining?: A Case Study of Coastal River Aggregate Mining Policy in Oregon," March 25 (Thursday), 9:00 to 11:00, 1420 Valley Library.

Skye Root, "Analyzing the Perspectives and Behaviors of Teachers on Invasive Species Uising a Focus Group Methodology," March 19 (Friday), 9:30 to 11:30, 304 Fairbanks Hall.

Sue Porter, "The Dynamics of Work, Poverty and Business Cycles: An Analysis of Oregon Households Receiving Food Assistance," March 5 (Friday), 12:00 to 14:00, 304 Fairbanks Hall.

Brian Collins, "The Politics of Health Reform and Coverage Expansion in Oregon: A
Comparison with Other States," February 9 (Tuesday), 14:00 to 15:00, Valley Library Room 1420.

Events

Summer Field School, Isle of Skye, Scotland (June 2009): Bruce Weber, Bridget kelleher, Amy Ewing, Kristin Chatfield, Yao Yin & Alejandra Juarez.
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OSU Day at the Capitol (May 2009): Heather Bene, Dawn Marie Gaid, Brent Steel, Cliff Gagnier, Derric Jacobs & Tim Inman

Recent MPP Student News

Yao Yin's (pictured on left) paper "Maximizing Local Sustainability: The Way to Sustain Global Companies Facing the Revival of Political and Economic Boundaries" was selected by the St. Gallen Symposium as one of the best student research papers in a worldwide competition. She was invited to present her paper at the Symposium inSwitzerland, 2009. Yao has also been selected as a student assistant for the 2009 ESRI User Conference in San Diego, California.

Alejandra Juarez was awarded a 2009-2010 Oregon University System SYLFF Graduate Fellowship for International Research.

Skye Root is the recipient of the 2009 Oregon Sea Grant Graduate Research Fellowship.

Kristin Chatfield has received a $2,500 grant from the OSU Rural Studies Program to support her work with Oregon Housing and Community Services as part of the Rural Continuum of Care Program.

Pami Monnette has received a $2,500 grant from the OSU Rural Studies Program to help an organization in Coos Bay assess their low income residents' housing and hunger needs.

Professor Scott Akins and recent graduate Richard Stansfield have an article accepted for publication in Homicide Studies Journal ("Immigration, Economic Disadvantage and Homicide: A Community-level analysis of Austin, Texas). 

Lauren Goschke, Elizabeth O'Neill and Yao Yin were selected and received scholarships to participate in the National Education for Women's Leadership Conference that is being held at Portland State University, June 19 to 24, 2008.

Stephanie Ogden has won the 2008 University Club of Portland Scholarship and a 2008 Oregon Lottery Scholarship.

Vince Adams was awarded a 2008 Oregon Lottery Scholarship.

Sarah Kopper (picture on the right) is working in Senegal, Africa for the African development NGO Tostan. "Tostan's mission is to empower African communities to bring about sustainable development and positive social transformation based on respect for human rights." 

Catherine Clark and Yao Yin delivered a whitepaper ("The Sustainability of Biomass Energy in the Pacific Northwest') at the Biomass Feedstock Partnership Workshop sponsored by OSU Sun Grant in Portland, Oregon, August 27-29, 2007 (the whitepaper is available below).

Elizabeth O’Neill published a report on "Paid Maternity Leave for the Institute for Women’s Policy." She presented the findings of the report at a U.S. Congressional subcommittee during August, 2007. Elizabeth has also been appointed as a research assistant for the Research Network on Gender Politics and the State. 

Bridget Burns is the Chair of the Oregon Student Assistance Commission, having been appointed by Governor Kulongoski in January of 2006. She previously served on the State Board of Higher Education from 2003 to 2006 and currently works as a consultant for the Oregon University System. Bridget also served on the Oregon Citizens Commission on the Legislature, a 30-person commission evaluating Oregon governmental practices.

Melissa Braybrooks International Activities

Pursuing an international track in the Masters in Public Policy, Melissa Braybrooks has taken advantage of opportunities, exploring a diverse range of internationally related policy sectors and topics while in the program. Melissa participated in the 2007 International Comparative Rural Policy Seminar (ICRPS), held in Solsona, Spain. The annual Rural Policy Consortium gathers Masters and PhD students, faculty, professionals and varying levels of government officials from Canada, Europe, the USA, and South America in an effort to strengthen communication among stakeholders of rural development; instigate dialogue between regions and countries with varying policy methods and implementation strategies; and introduce techniques, methodology, and tools that can support such comparative processes.

In the summer of 2007 Melissa took an internship with the Bulgarian NGO Bluelink in Sophia Bulgaria (http://www.bluelink.net/en/). The position required a range of multidisciplinary duties that were aimed at supporting the organizations objectives of offering a free virtual network to heighten communication, and participation among public, third sector, and governmental entities involved in issues of environment, sustainable development, democracy and civil society within Bulgaria.

In January 2008 Melissa will begin a fellowship with the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) in Geneva Switzerland, working within the Economic Integration and Cooperation Division to assist in works on several policy projects in biomass in Russia, Indonesia & Malaysia.

In addition, Melissa has been offered a position with the Rome based Vision and Value Management Consulting organization, and its sister company Vision Think Tank, which offer a synergy of resources related to policy integration issues, such as risk assessment, territorial marketing and regional economic policies. Melissa’s particular project relates directly with her research in accession policy, specifically economic and entrepreneurial policy in the regions of South Eastern Europe.

International Comparative Rural Policy Studies Consortium

International Comparative Rural Policy Studies Field School,
University of the Highlands and Islands, Scotland, June-July 2009

MPP students Bridget Kelleher, Amy Ewing, Kristin Chatfield, Alejandra Juarez and Yao Yin (pictured on the left) attended the 2009 International Comparative Rural Policy Studies Field School in Scotland with support from the OSU Rural Studies Program and the MPP Program.  The international faculty and students participating came from across the world including Peru, Ecuador, Spain, Norway, Canada, China, Germany, Italy, Scotland and the U.S.With the help of "Flat Benny," MPP students and faculty spot Nessie (Loch Ness Monster) during a cruise on Loch Ness, Scotland.

International Comparative Rural Policy Studies Field School,
University of Missouri - Columbia, July 2008, by Steph Ogden

With help from the MPP program, first year students Yao Yin and Steph Ogden attended the 2008 ICRPS Field School at the University of Missouri, Columbia.  Participants in the two-week conference hailed from 12 countries on 4 continents: England, Scotland, Norway, Spain, China, Mongolia, Venezuela, Peru, Ecuador, Chile, the U.S. and Canada.  The rich diversity of participants and perspectives helped us to understand the challenges faced by rural communities in the U.S. in a more global context.

Lectures from international experts broached topics such as biofuel production, the effects of consumer trends toward organic and local agriculture, and the importance of differing definitions of “rural” across cultures and policy spheres.  Field activities included discussions with local stakeholders, regarding their respective livelihoods and took students to a family farm, a local vineyard, and the county fair.  As a final project, teams of ICRPS students conducted consulting projects for one of 5 rural communities in the Columbia vicinity, helping community members to brainstorm solutions to impending challenges such as shrinking economic livelihoods, outmigration, and educational deficit.

Participating in the ICRPS conference has helped me to better understand the complexity of the challenges addressed by rural policies in different nations.  While many of the challenges to rural communities across the globe are similar in nature, the policy objectives differ widely across regions.  While some intend to diversify rural areas or transition them to more urban ones, others are vehemently trying to protect rural values and way of life, even if doing so implies an economic cost.  Seeing this complexity first hand has helped to remind me of how many perspectives must be incorporated in order to make any policy a successful one.

International Comparative Rural Policy Studies Field School,
University of Barcelona, July 2007

With support from OSU’s Master in Public Policy (MPP) program, Melissa Braybrooks and Emily Kearney (pictured on the right) attended the 2007 ICRPS summer course in Solsona, Spain. During the two-week course, Braybrooks and Kearney attended daily lectures from a variety of policy professionals, participated in on-site visits with local stakeholders engaged in different spheres of rural policy, and worked in internationally diverse groups to conduct a holistic development plan for a particular rural region. Each summer course is attended by new and returning students. Braybrooks, a first-year student, said that seeing presentations from second-year students was extremely beneficial. “Not only did it provide ideas of how to present and formulate my areas of interest, but the feedback session really enabled me to envision where my current framework had holes or was missing major conceptualizations of the larger picture.”

The 2008 field school is hosted by the University of Missouri-Columbia. Students examined various approaches to rural policy including subsidiarity, federalism and the role of local government, agricultural policy, environmental and conservation policy, economic development policy, tourism policy, energy policy, and multifunctionality. MPP students Yao Yin and Stephanie Ogden (pictured to the left) both attended the Missouri-based field school.

 Graduate Updates and Student Success

Graduates of the MPP program have found jobs as Research Analysts, Data and Policy Analysts, Program Managers, Public Economists, Environmental Consultants, Community Outreach Specialists, Development Specialists, Policy Advisors, Environmental Educators, and Program Analysts in such organizations as the Oregon Progress Board, U.S. Census Bureau, Oregon Employment Department, Oregon Administrative Services Department, Oregon Department of Business Services, Oregon Legislative Revenue Office, Oregon Housing and Community Services Department, U.S. House of Representatives, U.S.D.A. Forest Service, Mercy Corps, Rural Development Initiative, Oregon Poison Center, Multnomah County (OR), and Wirthy Environmental Consulting. Graduates have also went on to other graduate programs including law school (e.g., Columbia School of Law) and Ph.D. programs (e.g., University of Oregon's Sociology Ph.D. program and OSU's Environmental Science Ph.D. program).

2006 MPP graduate Alex Johnson (picture on the left) has been appointed to the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the Helsinki Commission. Alex is formerly a recipient of a Congressional BlackCaucus Fellowship and currently is a policy advisor for U.S. Representative Alcee L. Hastings (D-FL).

2007 MPP graduate Sara Curiel (picture on the right with Governor Kulongoski), now the Community Development Coordinator for Rural Development Initiatives (a rural development nonprofit), recently received a $400,000 grant from the Northwest Area Foundation to continue her work on Latino Outreach in Rural Communities. Sara’s Latino Outreach program was initially developed with OSU Extension and the OSU Sustainable Rural Communities Initiative.