APPAM's 2020 Regional Student Conferences
Sponsoring Schools
DC Regional Conference Sponsors: American University, College of William & Mary, George Mason University, Georgetown University, George Washington University, Johns Hopkins University, University of Maryland, College Park, and Virginia Commonwealth University.
California Regional Conference Sponsors: Claremont Graduate University, Pardee RAND Graduate School, Pepperdine University, University of California, Irvine, University of California, Los Angeles, University of California, Riverside, University of California, San Diego, and University of Southern California.
Students from non-sponsoring schools may also submit proposals for their work to be included in the conferences. For more information about the 2020 conferences, please contact Leslie Ofori for DC, lofori@appam.org, or Samantha Oliver Thomason for CA, soliver@appam.org.
Policy Areas
- Crime and Drugs: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Drug use and legalization, incarceration effects, prisoner outcomes, police and court processes, international crime, black markets, corruption, rehabilitation programs, recidivism, human rights abuses, etc.
- Economics: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Economic development and stagnation, markets and their interactions, analysis of economic issues including production, consumption, savings, investmetn and any issues affecting them, inflation, and growth.
- Education: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Head Start, pre-K, kindergarten, elementary education, high school, college, student loans, school and teacher accountability, disadvantaged students, charter schools, grants and financial aid, teacher evaluation and effectiveness, curriculum, student achievement and attainment, class size and composition, after school and summer programs, Veterans (GI Bill), arts and culture programs in schools, etc.
- Energy Policy: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Energy options and use, research for new sources of energy, etc.
- Environmental and Natural Resource Security: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Pollution, waterways, conservation efforts, protected land and species, natural resource scarcity and management, green economies, land reform, climate change, sustainability, etc.
- Family and Child Policy: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Marriage and marriage education, child support enforcement, child care access, child care subsidies and quality, infants and toddlers, child wellbeing, parental education and employment, vulnerable children and families, school readiness, intergenerational mobility, childhood hunger, family resource and income management, familial immigration concerns, single parent and child custody issues, family planning, etc.
- Health Policy: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Medicare, Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), barriers to health care access, wellness programs for aging populations and persons with disabilities, rehabilitation programs for veterans, obesity and nutrition (exclusive of SNAP and WIC), reproductive health, health care costs, physician behaviors, health literacy, alcohol, drug and tobacco use, arts programs as rehabilitation, etc.
- Homeland Security and Emergency Management: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: private and public sector capability to minimize the impact of disasters on the American public, the planning, response, recovery and mitigation of emergency management, and the planning of homeland security and emergency preparedness organizational issues.
- Housing and Community Development: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Housing stipends, Section-8 housing, community development plans to alleviate crime and poverty, foreclosures, home ownership, relocation assistance, Federal Housing Assistance Loans (FHAs), mortgage assistance, home owner and rental insurance, veterans housing programs, etc.
- Impact of Politics on the Policy Process: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Implementing policy, policy reform, policymaking, policy procedures, political participation in policy, policy analysis, accommodating changing attitudes, grant policies, policy across all levels of government: federal, state and local, government efficiency, participation in governance, bureaucracy, intergovernmental relations, budget allocations, the effect of politics on policy, elections, global politics, etc.
- International Development Policy: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: the economic, political, health, and ethical factors of development, economic stagnation, population displacement, food insecurity, and political repression in developing areas, and the effects of interventions on development outcomes.
- Labor, Employment, and Training: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Unemployment, underemployment, re-training programs, veterans transition to civilian careers, workplace accommodation for persons with disabilities, earned income tax credit (EITC), the Child Tax Credit and the Additional Child Tax Credit, unemployment insurance, internships, apprenticeships, outsourcing, etc.
- National Security and Foreign Policy: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: core security issues such as traditional intelligence and defense analysis, international security problems in general, and emerging issues such as peace operations and intricacies of information warfare.
- Politics, Presidential Studies, and Election Management: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: campaign finance and contributions, elections, and the impact of public opinion and polling.
- Population and Migration Issues: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Immigration trends, culture, population growth and decline, aging populations, policy reactions to demographic changes, minority and immigrant migration, labor migration across borders, etc.
- Poverty and Income Policy: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Food insecurity, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs (SNAP), the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program, Home Energy Assistance Programs (HEAP), welfare, school breakfast and lunch programs, personal retirement planning and income, the Great Recession outcomes, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), poverty reduction programs, savings and asset accumulation, disaster assistance, veterans assistance, disability programs including Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income, etc.
- Public and Nonprofit Management and Finance: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Performance management, citizen assessments of public performance, measuring efficacy of federal, state and local programs, block grants, intergovernmental finance, nonprofit management and finance, program implementation, citizen engagement, tax policy, knowledge management, public information sharing, budget cuts, government priorities, etc.
- Social Equity and Race: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Gender (including transgender and non-binary gender identification), race, religion, national origin, ethnicity, immigration and LGBT issues, affirmative action and diversity programs, etc. May have overlap with Employment and Training Programs on affirmative action and diversity hiring programs.
- Science and Technology: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Science as evidence in policymaking, resource allocation related to science, technology, innovation and economic development; knowledge management within and across organizations, national borders, etc.
- Tools of Analysis: Methods, Data, Informatics, and Research Design: This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Methods of analysis, big data, data collection and structuring, research design, policy informatics, computational modeling, system dynamics, data visualization, applications of analytic methods, evidence-based decision making, estimating causal effects, assessing bias, etc.
Past Conferences
During these conferences, students presented research across a wide variety of policy areas, on conference panels with their peers. Participating students gained valuable research presentation experience, as well as received important feedback from academics, practitioners, and other students. Students had several opportunities to network and make connections with a diverse group of policy professionals, as well as other policy students.
2019 Conferences
APPAM hosted two regional student conferences in 2019. The California Regional Student Conference was held on April 12 – 13 at University of Irvine in Irvine, CA, and the DC Regional Student Conference was held on March 29 – 30 at American University in Washington, DC.
Read about the 2019 DC Event
Read about the 2019 CA Event
2018 Conferences
APPAM hosted two regional student conferences in 2018. The California Regional Student Conference was held on March 9 – 10 at Claremont Graduate University in Claremont, CA, and the DC Regional Student Conference was held on April 6 – 7 at American University in Washington, DC.
Read About the 2018 CA Event
Read About the 2018 DC Event