Whether we are discussing affordable housing, access to healthcare, racial equity, gender equity, LGBTQ+ rights, forced displacement, or climate change, current and aspiring policymakers should see the private sector as a key partner, Batten professor Christine Mahoney argues. For the next installment of Batten Expert Chats, Mahoney will speak and take questions on how investments can act as an engine for positive social impact.

In August 2017, white supremacists gathered in Charlottesville and the University of Virginia for the Unite the Right rally, now familiar to people around the world. Rally attendees met counter-protestors in a violent clash that killed a peaceful protestor. UVA and Charlottesville were caught unprepared. On the third anniversary of this event, Batten’s dean, Ian Solomon, will speak with Risa Goluboff, dean of the UVA School of Law, and take questions from the audience. As chair of the Deans Working Group, Dean Goluboff led efforts to assess the University’s response to the rally and make recommendations for change.

Young people across the country are experiencing all kinds of loss, whether it’s the death of a loved one or the loss of freedom after moving back home. What can we do about it? During the next edition of Batten Expert Chats, Brooke Lehmann, Batten lecturer, will speak and take questions on heightened anxiety and depression among young people, as well as the path to an appropriate policy response. 

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What constitutes an effective lawmaker? The discourse around members of Congress once focused solely on party affiliations, but the legislative effectiveness scores developed by the Center for Effective Lawmaking. For the latest edition of Batten Expert Chats, CEL co-directors Craig Volden and Alan Wiseman will speak and take questions on the origins of the scores they developed, what they mean for our political system, and how they’re currently being used.  

At a moment when our country’s inequalities have come into sharp focus, many colleges and universities are looking to make their institutions more inclusive. But what does a meaningful commitment to diversity actually look like? In this week’s installment of Batten Expert Chats, Dana Laurens (COL ’09, MPP ’10), senior associate for policy and advocacy at Education Reform Now, and her colleague, Michael Dannenberg, Director of Strategic Initiatives for Policy, will speak and take questions on the types of policies needed to hold institutions, including the University of Virginia, accountable for following through on pledges and statements about racial equity and inclusivity.

Allison P. Harris is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Yale University and a Research Fellow at the Institution of Social and Policy Studies. She conducts research in American politics with a specialization in law and courts. Prof. Harris’ current research agenda investigates the ways in which institutional change affects disparities in institutional outcomes, specifically within the criminal legal system. Prior to joining the faculty at Yale, Prof. Harris was an Assistant Professor at the Pennsylvania State University (2017-2019) and a Postdoctoral Research Associate at Princeton University (2016-2017).