PPC Graduate Student Appointed to Fellowship Program

Joseph Hamm, a Public Policy Center Graduate research assistant and doctoral student in psychology and law, was one of eight UNL students to be appointed to the Center for Great Plains Studies 2013 Graduate Fellows Program.

According to the press release the program "provides a place for select graduate students to work, meet, obtain support, learn from fellow students, engage with Center faculty and staff, benefit from the center's resources and progress in their studies."

AHRQ Newsletter Features PPC Project

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) focused on the work of Center Associate Director, Nancy Shank, Ph.D., in their most recent newsletter Her AHRQ funded research has found that behavioral health providers are generally positive about health information exchanges and those providers tended to be younger, confident in their computer skills, and had prior satisfaction with electronic health records.

Kris Marsh to Give a Free Talk at UNL

Kris Marsh will be the featured speaker in the next installment of the Thomas C. Sorensen Policy Seminar Series.
Dr. Marsh is a faculty member at the University of Maryland as well as a blogger and contributor to CNN in America. Her talk, "In the Middle Class but Single and Living Alone: What are the Economic, Racial, and Political Implications?" will be held on April 8th, 2013 from 4:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. in Burnett Hall, Room 107 on UNL’s city campus. This talk will open up a broader discussion of how alternative avenues into the middle class may vary by race, social and racial inequality, and policy implications. This event is free and open to the public.
Click here to read Dr. Marsh's presentation slides.

PPC Drug Court Evaluation Mentioned in the State of the Judiciary

The Public Policy Center's three-year statewide evaluation of Nebraska's drug courts was noted by Chief Justice Michael Heavican during his 2013 State of the Judiciary address. The evaluation found, among a number of issues, that Nebraska drug courts match or exceed national drug court participant graduation rates and have lower rates of recidivism.

Disaster Behavioral Health Conference

The Great Plains Disaster Behavioral Health Conference focuses on issues related to disaster, including: resiliency, ethical issues, PTSD, and children’s response to disaster. Confirmed speakers for 2013 include Dr. George Bonnano (resilience scholar); Dr. Robin Gurwitch (Children’s mental health expert); and Dr. Chalmers Clark (ethics scholar). This conference is geared toward Behavioral Health Professionals, Public Health Officials, Clergy, Emergency Managers, First Responders, and Security Professionals with responsibilities or interest in disaster preparedness, response or recovery. More information will be posted soon.

The save the date flyer can be found here found here.

Public Policy Center Hiring Postdoctoral Research Associate

The University of Nebraska Public Policy Center (Lincoln, NE), in partnership with the National Center for State Courts (Williamsburg, VA), is seeking a postdoctoral fellow based in Lincoln to serve as a key member of our Interdisciplinary Trust and Confidence research team. The fellowship is a two-year appointment and is funded by the Law & Social Science Program of the National Science Foundation. Review of applications will begin November 30, 2012, and continue until the position is filled. Click here for full position details and information on how to apply.

The University of Nebraska has an active National Science Foundation ADVANCE gender equity program, and is committed to a pluralistic campus community through affirmative action, equal opportunity, work-life balance, and dual careers.

2nd Annual CERT Conference

The Nebraska Citizen Corp Council, in conjunction with Nebraska Emergency Management Agency and Public Policy Center, held the 2nd Annual CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) Conference in Grand Island, Nebraska from August 17-18, 2012. Over 25 CERT volunteers from across the state came together to participate in a series of trainings and exercises. The goal of this conference was to highlight the value of training for CERTs around the state by participating in a full scale exercise that simulates an actual disaster or emergency. This year, conference organizers were able to show volunteers options for local training that come at little or no cost and are easy to put together for their teams.