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School of Social Policy & Practice
Staging the plague
Eighty-one students training in a diversity of health professions worked with regional and federal agencies to confront an imagined outbreak scenario centered around bubonic plague in Philadelphia.
As market concentration goes up, employees’ wages go down
Labor economist Ioana Marinescu discusses her research, which she presented to the Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday, Oct. 16.
The Healing Word
Deborah Thomas embeds herself in communities stricken by violence to chronicle the humanity revealed during the aftermath.
Educational leaders examine the ‘University of the Future’
“Beyond the Walls: The University of the Future” brought scholars, administrators, and technology experts together to discuss the future of higher education and the disruption of the traditional “brick and mortar” college campus.
Sara Bachman named dean of Penn School of Social Policy & Practice
Bachman, an acclaimed scholar, epidemiologist and expert in social welfare policy, will lead the school beginning January 1st.
Social work students help refugees in Europe
Doctoral students from the School of Social Policy & Practice shared their expertise with leaders at an NGO that provides trauma-informed services for refugees in Athens.
To improve online information about violence and abuse, one group turned to Wikipedia
Three undergrads and a recent alum, working with the Ortner Center’s Susan B. Sorenson, added the latest scientific research to more than 50 entries.
Making sense of what’s happening at the border
Despite a recent executive order, serious questions remain regarding the 2,300 migrant children who have been separated from their families and detained in the U.S. Penn experts weigh in on many of the issues involved.
May graduate brings research experience, lessons to India
The Fulbright English Teaching Assistant grant recipient will bring his multicultural approach to teaching English to the Vivekananda School Dehradun.
One-fifth of homeless youth are victims of human trafficking
A new study highlights the pipeline from abuse to homelessness to sex trafficking among youth in Philadelphia, D.C., and Phoenix, the largest study to date on human trafficking and teens.
In the News
Homeless or overhoused: Boomers are stuck at both ends of the housing spectrum
Dennis Culhane of the School of Social Policy & Practice says that boomers have made up the largest share of the homeless population since the ‘80s.
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There is one major element missing from the debate on kids and social media
In an opinion essay, PIK Professor Desmond Upton Patton says that gun violence needs to be part of the conversation about how smartphones and social media impact young people.
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We don’t see what climate change is doing to us
In an Op-Ed, R. Jisung Park of the School of Social Policy & Practice says that public discourse around climate change overlooks the buildup of slow, subtle costs and their impact on human systems.
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Places across the U.S. are testing no-strings cash as part of the social safety net
Stacia West of the Center for Guaranteed Income Research at the School of Social Policy & Practice says that guaranteed income payments improve people’s psychological wellbeing by reducing their distress. Amy Castro, also of the Center, points out that such programs are expensive, so important questions need to be asked.
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New book examines sectarianism and the housing crisis in Northern Ireland
In her book “In Power, Politics and Territory in the New Northern Ireland,” Elizabeth DeYoung of the School of Social Policy & Practice says that sectarianism has contributed to the housing crisis in Northern Ireland and continues to influence decision-making on the needs for homes.
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