UCLA Luskin MSW Student Receives CSWE Grant
UCLA Luskin master of social welfare student Liza Li has been awarded a Minority Fellowship Program grant by the Council on Social Welfare Education (CSWE), the national association representing social work education in the United States, based in Arlington, Virginia.
In October, Li traveled to Kansas City to attend CSWE’s annual national program meeting to receive the award, which includes a $10,000 stipend as well as support and leadership skill training opportunities for the fellowship year.
CSWE’s minority fellowship program supports the mission of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to increase the number of individuals trained to work with underrepresented and underserved racial and ethnic minority persons dealing with mental health and/or substance abuse disorders.
As an MSW student, Li’s focus is on addressing mental health disparities and promoting the well-being of the aging Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) population.
“My research and practice focus on supporting older adults and their families by enhancing mental health accessibility and awareness,” said Li, who also holds a master’s degree in educational psychology from UC Riverside.
She said she aspires to become a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) in California and to provide culturally competent mental health and social support to AAPI older adults and other immigrant families with limited resources.
“As a first-generation Asian American, I am committed to giving back to my community and beyond.”
UCLA Evaluates L.A.’s Plan to Invest Billions in Wastewater Recycling Infrastructure
As urgency grows to develop climate solutions, a new UCLA report confirms that the wastewater recycling plans for the nation’s second-largest city would make Los Angeles more resilient and self-reliant during droughts or disasters that cut off outside water supplies.
Using a new methodology to evaluate hundreds of thousands of scenarios, the UCLA research team, led by the Luskin Center for Innovation (LCI), found that the Los Angeles city plan would significantly boost local water resilience, minimize risks of aging infrastructure and uncertain water imports, and dramatically reduce drought- and earthquake-driven water shortages.
Los Angeles’ wastewater treatment plan, Pure Water Los Angeles, would create a renewable local water source of more than 250,000 acre-feet of clean drinking water, enough for more than half a million households annually. To support the city’s goal to recycle all wastewater by 2035, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power committed to invest at least $6 billion in the infrastructure project, previously titled Operation Next (OpNEXT).
Supporting local water supply transitions is not just needed in Los Angeles. Other cities dependent on imported water, such as Phoenix and Las Vegas, as well as densely populated urban areas around the world can use the new methodology to shape their own water solutions.
Learn more about the Luskin Center for Innovation’s research initiatives on local water supply and wastewater infrastructure.
U.S. Governance Challenges Put Election Integrity at Risk, Report Finds
With two weeks to go until the U.S. presidential election, a new analysis highlights critical governance challenges that threaten the efficacy of the American political system.
“Declining democratic accountability means that the power of the American people’s voice will be diminished — both in terms of electoral voice and the power of social institutions to check elected officials once in office,” according to the report authored by researchers from the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, the Los Angeles-based Berggruen Institute and the Hertie School in Berlin, Germany.
Based on data from the latest Berggruen Governance Index, the report finds that both democratic accountability and state capacity have sharply declined in the U.S. since 2015.
Particularly in key swing states such as North Carolina, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Georgia, declines in democratic norms — including curtailment of voting rights in some instances — could lead to “critical consequences for electoral integrity,” the authors caution.
The report also notes that an “outsized role of money in politics” has been exacerbated by landmark U.S. Supreme Court decisions that have removed limits on electoral spending and increasingly marginalized the voices of average citizens.
Regarding state capacity, the report finds a broad and steady erosion since 2000, occurring across the sectors of fiscal capacity, coordination capacity and delivery capacity. Weakened state capacity negatively affects the U.S. government’s ability to respond to crises or natural disasters. This can lead to popular anger and increasing frustration with government efficacy, the report says.
— Democracy News Alliance
Luskin Experts Join UC Consortium Aimed at Meeting Californians’ Basic Needs
UCLA Luskin’s Paavo Monkkonen and Juan Matute have joined the Abundance Policy Research Consortium at the University of California’s Possibility Lab.
They will join a team of experts from across the state who will spend the next year developing an evidence-based policy agenda focused on expanding Californians’ access to essential resources, goods and services.
While the state is home to great economic abundance, far too many struggle with economic insecurity and a lack of access to basic goods and services. The new consortium is part of the Possibility Lab’s Abundance Accelerator, launched in April to leverage research, innovation and collaboration to work toward a “fundamentals-first” policy agenda.
Monkkonen, a professor of urban planning and public policy, will focus on housing.
“This is an exciting opportunity to work with a diverse and knowledgeable group dedicated to improving Californians’ lives,” Monkkonen said. “The state of California has taken a number of important steps on housing, but a lot of work lies ahead.”
Matute, deputy director of the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies, will focus on transportation. The consortium’s other areas of focus are food, water, energy, health care, safety, employment, education, child care, elder care and digital connectivity.
The research developed by Monkkonen, Matute and other consortium members will be used for strategic planning by high-level California state government partners.
Gilens Book Honored for Its Enduring Influence
UCLA Luskin’s Martin Gilens has received the Aaron Wildavsky Enduring Contribution Award from the public policy section of the American Political Science Association (APSA). The award, given in recognition of scholarly work that has made a lasting impact on the field of public policy over the years, honors Gilens’ “Why Americans Hate Welfare: Race, Media and the Politics of Antipoverty Policy.” The 1999 book, which sheds light on myths and misconceptions about welfare policy, public opinion and the role of the media in both, has been “profoundly influential,” APSA organizers said. They cited the book’s “rigorous analysis and insightful arguments, which have significantly advanced our knowledge of the intersection between public perception, race and policy, shaping both academic discourse and practical policy considerations.” The prize was presented this month at APSA’s annual convention in Philadelphia. Gilens, a professor of public policy, political science and social welfare at UCLA, has published widely on political inequality, mass media, race, gender and welfare politics. He is author of “Affluence & Influence: Economic Inequality and Political Power in America” and co-author of “Democracy in America?: What Has Gone Wrong and What We Can Do About It.”
A Decline in Student Victimization, Even in Areas of Conflict
A new study measuring changes in campus climate at Israeli elementary schools over a 12-year period found a steady decline in students’ feelings of victimization — including marked improvements for Arab students and those from a lower socioeconomic status, a welcome surprise to researchers. The study set out to assess the prevalence of physical, emotional, social and cyber-based violence among students from different backgrounds, said UCLA Luskin Social Welfare Professor Ron Avi Astor, a co-author of the paper just published in the Journal of School Violence. Fifth- and sixth-graders at both Jewish and Arab school campuses across the country were surveyed between 2008 and 2019, a time when the Israeli education system was making significant investments in violence prevention, including retraining school staff to prioritize the creation of a caring environment. While the study did not establish a direct causal relationship between the investments and the findings, international researchers have linked improvements in school climate to policies and interventions centered on students’ social and emotional well-being. A 2023 study co-authored by Astor found this to be true at California middle and high schools, which saw a steep decline in day-to-day violence from 2001 to 2019. The study in Israel was based on data collected before the outbreak of war in Gaza in 2023, but during a time of ongoing geopolitical conflict and cultural strife. “This study shows what a positive climate in schools, cultural recognition, resources and intentional violence prevention can do to improve the lives of millions of students on a day-to-day level, even in a war-torn place like the Middle East,” Astor said.
Jack Rothman Reflects on a Century Through Poetry of ‘Three Worlds’
Jack Rothman, professor emeritus of social welfare at UCLA Luskin, recently published his second book of poetry, “Three Worlds,” reflections on nearly a century of lived experience. At 97, Rothman refers to his latest collection as a “delayed harvest,” a fresh batch of poetry that “tells of three worlds where I have chiefly dwelled,” he writes in his introduction. “These include my ‘Interior World’ of reflection and psychological entanglement, my ‘Family World’ affording vital sustenance, and my ‘Public World’ of social engagement — emphasizing ideals of social justice,” he explains. Like his first book of poetry, Rothman said he wanted to approach poetry differently, “so that me and the reader connect in a direct way, that we’re both on the same page, and that the reader doesn’t have to stop and run to the dictionary or computer — to write in a way that goes from my heart to the reader’s heart without a translator,” he said. Rothman, the son of immigrants, recalls his early years and his family, as well as confronting and experiencing the process of aging. A prolific researcher and writer, Rothman published some 25 books during his long academic career, primarily focused on community organizing and racial justice. Other previous literary pursuits have included “Searching for Butsnevits: A Shtetl Tale,” about his search for his ancestral home, a Jewish village, or shtetl, in the Ukraine. “I wrote these poems in later life,” he notes. “Being and coping, I conclude, are a bafflement, while also a joy.” Rothman’s latest book is now available on Amazon.
