Before winter break commenced, students, professors, and staff from the Batten School and University gathered with members of the United Nations in Minor Hall to study the art of storytelling—or at least one aspect of it.

On February 23, the third annual NASPPA-Batten Student Simulation Competition will take place, bringing together a record 585 graduate students from around the globe to tackle policy issues associated with forced migration through computer-based simulated gameplay.

Andy Pennock is not your typical breed of professor. The father of four young boys (two sets of fraternal twin boys, aged three and five), teaches five courses per year and yet somehow finds the time and energy to publish a leading textbook on writing for public policy and an op-ed on education policy.

As rainy, gray clouds loomed over Monticello, Sylvia Earle – an oceanographer, explorer, author and lecturer named a “Living Legend” by the Library of Congress, and this year’s recipient of the Thomas Jefferson Foundation Medal in Citizen Leadership – gave her keynote address.

UVA’s Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost created a new awards program to commend faculty for the contributions their public service makes to student learning, the advancement of scholarship and creative activity, and the University’s own public mission.

Zach Blackburn’s interest in public policy and his eventual decision to enroll in the University of Virginia’s Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy all began with an unexpected family trip to Latvia.

Second-year MPP candidate Caryl Merten is no stranger to foreign languages. As an undergraduate student, she received a degree in Foreign Affairs with a minor in French, and spent two years as senior resident in the language houses.

Framing plays an important role in lobbying, as interest groups strategically highlight some aspects of policy proposals while ignoring others to shape policy debates in their favour. However, due to methodological difficulties, we have remarkably little systematic data about the framing strategies of interest groups. 

The present work provides evidence that people assume a priori that Blacks feel less pain than do Whites. It also demonstrates that this bias is rooted in perceptions of status and the privilege (or hardship) status confers, not race per se. Archival data from the National Football League injury reports reveal that, relative to injured White players, injured Black players are deemed more likely to play in a subsequent game, possibly because people assume they feel less pain.

The conventional wisdom is that the U.S. Congress is not well-structured to do policy analysis. According to the received view, Congress’s internal organization is inconsistent with analytical perceptions and definitions of policy issues.