This is a repost. The blog was first posted 11/19/18. Thanksgiving is upon us. As we ready to join our families this holiday, it is worth taking a moment to reflect upon the meaning of the holiday. As a cultural geographer, I study how systems of cultural meaning and power structure our understanding of the…
Social Science Scholar: Human Rights Organizing with Amnesty International.
This summer, I had the privilege of being selected as Amnesty International USA’s legislative coordinator for the State of Florida. Amnesty International is the world’s largest grassroots human rights organization focusing on advocacy, reporting, and organizing. My job as a legislative coordinator entailed a volunteer leadership position that served as part of a state’s larger…
Ph.D. Spotlight: The Influence of Security and Support on Performance, Punishment, and Parental Engagement in Majority White and Majority Minority Schools
Schools across the United States are ramping up security in hopes of preventing shootings and other forms of school violence. There are two types of school security environments: inclusionary and exclusionary. Inclusionary security is intended to monitor and socialize students, while exclusionary environments are intended to remove students from the school. Many schools are supplementing…
Ph.D. Spotlight: “The Island of Lies”: A Qualitative Inquiry of the Disaster Response and Recovery in Puerto Rico Post-Maria
Hurricane Maria made landfall on the island of Puerto Rico in the early hours of September 20th, 2017. Hurricane Maria was a storm of unprecedented strength and a devastating blow to the island of Puerto Rico as the 5th strongest storm to ever hit United States territory. The unparalleled level of devastation combined with a slow-moving…
Social Science Scholar: An Examination of Health Care Quality in Florida Prisons.
This summer, I continued to work as a legal intern at the Law Office of James V. Cook, a local civil rights attorney who handles police and prison cases ranging from failure to treat to excessive force. For it to be considered a civil rights case, there needs to be a violation of consitutional rights….
Policy Pub: Intended Consequences: The Role of Fringe Movements in Civil Unrest
To learn about these topics in more depth, please navigate here to watch the full Policy Pub and Q&A from Dr. Casserleigh, presented by FSU’s College of Social Sciences and Public Policy. This policy pub details the organizational behavior of terrorist networks, and the role that fringe movements play in civil unrest. To begin with,…
Ph.D. Spotlight: Understanding Factors that Increase Citizens’ Participation in Community Development Projects in Lagos, Nigeria
Despite billions of dollars spent and hundreds of studies conducted, there seems to have been little progress made in meeting the housing and infrastructures shortages in Less Developed Countries (LDCs). Theoretical constructs such as culture, geography and institutions have not been able to explain this deficit. Few studies have provided empirical evidence of factors that…
Social Science Scholar: Looking to Future Policy Implications of COVID-19
This summer, I received a grant from the Social Science Scholars Program at Florida State University to complete a research project, internship, or volunteer project this summer. I had originally intended to use this grant to pursue a research internship in health policy, with a specific interest in the health of underserved women. However, due…
Policy Pub: Going Viral: What We Can learn from Pandemics, Past, Present, and…
To learn about these topics in more depth, please navigate here to watch the full Pubinar and Q&A from Dr. Rowan, presented by FSU’s College of Social Sciences and Public Policy. In these uncertain times, it is hard to know what to expect. It seems like every day, there is a new update about how…
Ph.D. Spotlight: Political Bias in America’s Universities
Conservative media, politicians, interest groups, citizens, and even academics often discuss the leftist orientation and perceived intellectual decline of the American college campus. Based on nationally representative surveys, a majority of Republican partisans and leaners say that colleges and universities have more of a negative than a positive impact on society. What stokes this conservative…
