In advance of last Saturday’s announcement that Tokyo will host the 2020 Summer Olympic Games, public policy professor John Rennie Short offered a fresh take on how to make the games more sustainable: keep them in the same place. Short suggested to writer Nate Berg, in an article for The Atlantic Cities, that instead of asking cities to invest billions of dollars in new Olympic venues the OIC should create a single site that would function more or less as an international city-state, overseen by the United Nations, to host the Olympics and its training in perpetuity. “There would be maybe… Continue Reading John Rennie Short, Public Policy, in The Atlantic Cities
Leading Principles and Practices in Elder Care (Health Professions Press) is a new book series edited by Erickson School Dean Judah Ronch and colleague Audrey Weiner, President and CEO of the Jewish Home Lifecare in New York. Ronch and Weiner have also co-authored the first two volumes in the series: Culture Change in Elder Care (available now) and Models and Pathways for Person-Centered Elder Care (to be released in October). Culture Change in Elder Care prepares health professionals with the essential arguments, values and business case for adopting new care models that better serve the needs of older adults “to bring… Continue Reading Judah Ronch, Erickson School, Publishes New Books on Elder Care
The Baltimore Sun reports that support is building among lawmakers to raise Maryland’s minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to at least $10 an hour. Why now? Donald F. Norris, professor and chair of public policy at UMBC, says, “People are running in a primary election for governor, that’s what’s different.” In addition to citing the support some candidates hope to get from labor, Norris says he also senses a legitimate concern among politicians about the growing number of workers who have been struggling, since the recession, to survive on $7.25 an hour. Whether or not this support translates into the… Continue Reading Donald Norris, Public Policy, in The Baltimore Sun
The U.S. Olympic Committee is expected to decide on a site to propose for the 2024 Summer Games in September 2015. Under the plans DC 2024 — the group exploring a Washington, D.C. bid — Baltimore-area venues would stage Olympic events and Baltimore would support the games with transit and hotel infrastructure. Critics are asking what benefit this would bring to the city and region, and if the costs could outweigh the revenue. Econimcs professor Dennis Coates told The Baltimore Sun that the Olympics are a financial boon to the International Olympic Committee, but not necessarily to the host cities. “The question… Continue Reading Dennis Coates, Economics, in The Baltimore Sun
In his latest Baltimore Sun opinion column, political science professor Thomas Schaller suggests that persistent and growing dependence on federal subsidies like food stamps, unemployment insurance and Medicaid “implies that economic inequality is worsening” in the U.S., in contrast to “preposterous warnings about creeping socialism.” Schaller cites data indicating that between 2009 and 2011 overall household incomes grew by 14%, but while wealth rose by 21% for the wealthiest 13% of Americans, it actually declined for every other wealth category in the bottom 87%. In time for Labor Day, the New Republic has highlighted another of Schaller’s Baltimore Sun columns,… Continue Reading Thomas Schaller, Political Science, in The Baltimore Sun and New Republic
Peter V. Rabins, MD, MPH, has been appointed senior fellow with the Institute for Leadership at UMBC’s Erickson School for the management of aging services, joining current senior fellow Chris Hollister. Rabins is professor of psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He has been on the Hopkins faculty since 1978. Over the past 35 years he has had appointments in the department of health policy and management and department of mental health, and served as vice-chair for academic affairs in the department of psychiatry as well as director of the division of geriatric psychiatry and neuropsychiatry. As the… Continue Reading Peter V. Rabins Joins Erickson School as Senior Fellow
Erle Ellis, associate professor of geography and environmental systems, appeared on a Smithsonian Magazine blog this week. The post “Watch How America’s Lands Changes from Forests to Fields” shares maps that Ellis created to depict how land use in the U.S. has evolved over the past 300 years. Ellis maps anthropogenic biomes—”a matrix of human-altered croplands, pastures, towns and cities…’anthromes’ for short” to help readers visualize humanity’s effect on the landscape. This semester, Fall 2013, Ellis is a visiting associate professor of landscape architecture at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design.
As Baltimore anticipates the start of the 2013 Grand Prix, a well-known 2011 economic impact analysis by UMBC economics professor Dennis Coates is again making news. The Press Box Online article “What Is Best Way To Measure Grand Prix’s Economic Impact?” notes that race organizers believe the 2012 Grand Prix generated $42.3 million in economic impact for Baltimore and the 2011 event generated $48 million. Coates, however, contested the 2011 figure in a assessment following that year’s Grand Prix, which indicated the impact was approximately $20 million less than the race organizers claimed. The article notes, “Coates’ argument centered on… Continue Reading Dennis Coates, Economics, on Press Box Online and SB Nation
Donald F. Norris, professor and chair of public policy at UMBC, offers insight in The Daily Record this week on a Maryland campaign finance law that prohibits statewide elected officials from soliciting or accepting campaign contributions when the legislature is in session. Although the law is intended to prohibit vote buying and the influence of policy through campaign finance, it also has the potential to create unfairness, where those running for office who are not currently statewide elected officials can raise funds while others must pause their fundraising efforts. Norris tells The Daily Record, “It’s always been unfair. The difference… Continue Reading Donald Norris, Public Policy, in the Daily Record
In advance of Labor Day, UMBC political science professor Thomas F. Schaller writes in his latest Baltimore Sun column that despite increased productivity, U.S. workers have less access to vacation time and lower pay than their international peers. Schaller references a study released earlier this year by the International Labor Organization, which found American workers are the most productive in the world, producing $63,885 of wealth annually on average. However, he notes, citing a recent study by the Center for Economic and Policy Research, “the United States is the only nation that doesn’t guarantee every worker a certain number of… Continue Reading Thomas Schaller, Political Science, in the Baltimore Sun
“Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler came under fire Tuesday for comments that his top rival in the Democratic primary for governor is running on little besides his African-American heritage,” write Erin Cox and Michael Dresser in The Baltimore Sun. What impact could Gansler’s statement have? Donald F. Norris, professor and chair of public policy at UMBC, tells the Sun that Gansler “has just offended a whole lot of voters he cannot afford to offend.” Read the full Baltimore Sun article here. Norris commented further about the situation in an August 13 interview on WTOP radio.
Sigma Phi Omega (SPO) is the national academic honor society in gerontology, for professionals who work with or on behalf of older persons. The UMBC chapter of SPO, Delta Lambda, has continued to grow, thanks to the strength of UMBC’s sociology, gerontology and Management of Aging Services programs. At a recent induction ceremony welcoming new members, the group also honored graduating member Susan Hannum, who pioneered Delta Lambda’s annual senior center “Food Drop.” Continuing volunteer activities with local senior centers and organizations remains a primary goal for the year ahead. The society also plans to connect with Washington D.C.-area colleagues… Continue Reading Gerontology Honor Society Expands, Plans Year Ahead
