News

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo
Apr 17, 2020

Coronavirus policies spread quickly across the U.S. Are cities and states learning — or just copying?

As the novel coronavirus has spread across U.S. cities and states, so have public policies aimed at stopping the pandemic. Batten's Craig Volden and co-author Charles R. Shipan examine how some states have learned from others’ policy successes, while others simply copy their neighbors or even compete against them, and why that matters.

First place winners
Apr 07, 2020

The Batten School and NASPAA Announce Global Winners of the 2020 Student Simulation Competition

Today, the Batten School and the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA) announced the winners of the 2020 NASPAA-Batten Student Simulation Competition—the largest student simulation competition in higher education. There were 64 teams competing at seven sites around the globe, devising and implementing public transport policies in order to create improved sustainability strategies for their virtual cities.

Craig Volden
Mar 06, 2020

Productive Politicians Fare Better in Primaries

Now that Super Tuesday is behind us, voters can look forward to another primary in the spring – this time for Congressional candidates. As a professor of public policy and politics at the Batten School and co-director of the Center for Effective Lawmaking, Craig Volden has studied what factors make for a successful candidate and drawn some conclusions about this state’s congressional delegation.

Students participate in a simulation
Feb 13, 2020

Simulation Learning Takes Students Out of the Classroom and Into the Middle of Public Crises

Every year, hundreds of master’s candidates from member institutions of NASPAA — the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration — participate in the NASPAA-Batten Student Simulation Competition, co-hosted by Batten's Center for Leadership Simulation and Gaming, to see who can devise the best solutions to international crises.

Center for Effective Lawmaking Grant Recipients
Nov 28, 2018

Center for Effective Lawmaking Announces First Round of Grant Recipients

The Batten School’s Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL), announced its first round of grant recipients. The Center, which launched in 2017, is a joint partnership between the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy and Vanderbilt University and is co-directed by Batten professor, Craig Volden and Vanderbilt professor, Alan E. Wiseman.

Post-Election Wrap Up with Craig Volden
Nov 13, 2018

Post-Election Wrap Up with Craig Volden

On Monday, Nov. 12, Batten students gathered in the Great Hall of Garrett Hall for a post-election wrap-up led by Batten’s Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL). This was not a typical Batten Hour with the exception that food was served. Rather, the event was reminiscent of a game of musical chairs. Every eight minutes, students moved to a new table, where CEL Director Craig Volden, Operations Director Greer Kelly, CEL researchers and interns, along with Professor of Practice of Public Policy Gerald Warburg, discussed the implications of last Tuesday's midterm election results.

Garrett Hall at Sunset

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