To earn a master of public policy degree at UCLA Luskin, students must demonstrate their command of the analytical and communication skills needed to develop real-world policy solutions. This year, 15 teams completed the rite of passage, presenting the results of their yearlong Applied Policy Project investigations into specific problems faced by a broad array of government agencies, nonprofits and other firms working in the public interest. Clients included several city and county offices; large nonprofits including the United Way and World Vision International; a nursing home in Tianjin, China; and local advocacy groups such as Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights Los Angeles. Students are encouraged to grapple with the challenges of policy implementation amid often conflicting social, political, economic and technical interests. During three virtual sessions in May, the teams described the policy issues they tackled, reviewed their research, presented a course of action, then fielded questions from peers and professors. They also produced full reports documenting their findings, made available to clients as well as future MPP students. This year, honors were granted to four APP projects:
- Interrupting the Cycle of Incarceration for Individuals with Mental Illness (Jess Bendit, Joshua Segui, Courtney B. Taylor, Rachel Vogt)
- Bus and Fleet Electrification Strategic Plan: City of Gardena’s GTrans (George Every, Robin Kaloustian, Will Proctor, Karishma Shamdasani, Aditya Voleti)
- Equity-Focused Heat Adaptation Strategies for Los Angeles County’s Office of Emergency Management (Hanqing Chu, Jacqueline Adams, Jiaxin Li, Sarah Goldmuntz)
- Los Angeles County Youth Diversion: Prioritizing Contract Accessibility for Community Based Service Providers (Savannah Walker, Monique Cardona, Sara Omanovic, Kaylyn Canlione)
