There have been years of stalled K-12 school finance reform efforts in Idaho, yet it was unclear what key Idaho education interest groups currently thought about how Idaho funds its public schools. Therefore, this project explored the institutional perspectives and beliefs of K-12 Idaho education stakeholders regarding the Idaho K-12...
Work occupies a considerable amount of time in most peoples’ lives and can be a source of great pleasure or a source of pain. To enhance peoples’ experience at work, we must first understand how to measure and improve the design of work. This research sought to do just that,...
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the largest federal nutrition assistance program in the US aiming at improving health and nutrition among low-income individuals and households. SNAP is a means tested program that provides monthly cash benefits to eligible households and individuals whose assets and net monthly incomes are...
This paper explores the history of housing policies in the United States and how they were implemented. It also examines the effects of discriminatory practices against minorities and low-income groups. There is evidence that this systemic form of discrimination creates conditions that cause poverty and unequal access to education, home...
Local Perceptions of Social-Ecological Change on the McKenzie: Implications for Resilience
This study sought to catalog local knowledge of long-term residents of the McKenzie River Valley as it pertains to landscape and community change and provide a general assessment of factors affecting the local social-ecological system’s resilience. Residents interviewed indicated...
This study uses interviews with 18 businesses in Oregon's Willamette Valley to explore business investment in the environment, and how this relates to ecosystem services, payment for ecosystem services programs, and the water-energy nexus. Our research led us to outline 5 factors that influence business investment in the environment, those...
During the 2011 Oregon Legislative session, seven bills were debated that addressed policy affecting small farms. This paper seeks to understand the environment surrounding these bills: what is the political structure for determining small farm policy? To answer this question seven policymakers were interviewed and two legislative hearings were observed....
The State of Oregon possesses a tumultuous relationship with the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and currently experiences one of the lowest participation rates in the country despite attempting several policy reforms. The State of Washington has exhibited a comparatively similar relationship. However, it has adopted a distinctive policy supplementation...
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Dr. Mark Edwards, Committee member representing Sociology & OSU Policy Analysis
Laboratory
Food insecurity is a common issue among college students in the United States with recent research suggesting that between 10-75% of college students are food insecure. In comparison, an estimated 10.2% of U.S. Households are food insecure. Food insecurity is associated with many negative health outcomes. The purpose of this...
In the past decade, scholars have increasingly turned to quantitative analysis to understand the complex interplay of factors driving intrastate conflict. International agencies, nonprofits and governments have maintained that food insecurity is a significant driver of violent conflict. This paper tests this popular assumption with a model drawn from Azar’s...