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Evans School of Public Policy & Governance

Category: News and Information

Evans School Researchers to Document Approaches to Equity in COVID-19 Economic Recovery Programs

This summer, Evans School Associate Professor Crystal Hall, and recent alumni Puja Kumar (MPA ’20) and Sehej Singh (MPA’20) will work with the U.S. Office of Evaluation Sciences (OES) and Small Business Administration (SBA).  In this work, they will work with a set of local governments around the country to understand how they are incorporating considerations of equity into the design and implementation of their COVID-19 grant and loan programs for small businesses. 

Evans School Research Team Releases Phase 2 Business Plan for a State-Created Public Cooperative Bank

The reports were prepared in response to state budgetary provisos directing a study of the feasibility of a state-created public cooperative bank. This Bank would assist members manage cash and investments more efficiently and establish a sustainable funding source of ready capital for infrastructure and economic development.

Together, We Can Build a Stronger and More Just World

On June 11th, the Evans School community came together to celebrate the graduating class of 2020 and the culmination of their years of hard work in pursuit of graduate degrees in public administration and public policy and management. Thank you to our graduates’ families and loved ones, our faculty and staff, members of the Advisory Board, and our distinguished keynote speakers U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal and Seattle City Councilmember Debora Juarez for joining us.

In my convocation address, I reflected that our students are graduating into a world in crisis. We are in a period of protest following the unconscionable killing of George Floyd, the latest of countless victims of systemic racism, racial hatred, and police brutality.  We are also in the midst of a pandemic that has isolated us, left many suffering loss, and has focused a separate lens on inequity and injustice, as its health and economic impacts have been disproportionately borne by communities of color, especially Black Americans.

Moments of crisis present us with great opportunity and great responsibility. The need for strong public policy and skillful public leadership has never been greater, and I am heartened by our graduates’ unwavering commitment to making racial justice actionable and to leading change. It gives me tremendous hope for our future.

Historian Yuval Harari has said, “We study history not to know the future but to widen our horizons, to understand that our present situation is neither natural nor inevitable, and that we consequently have many more possibilities before us than we can imagine.”

Throughout my time at the Evans School, I have challenged students to envision the future and to think about the limitless possibilities of their own potential impact. Today we ponder the same questions they have tackled each year: What will the future bring? Where will my unique passions and skills be most impactful? And how can I use my privilege and power to amplify the voices and needs of others?

The future may feel uncertain, but amidst the uncertainty, I have faith that Evans School graduates and alums will continue to rise to the challenge. In your hands, and with time and tremendous effort, we will emerge from this period as a stronger and more just world.

Charmila Ajmera (MPA ’20) Recognized in 2020 Husky 100

The Evans School is proud to recognize its newest member of the Husky 100 Charmila Ajmera, whose passion, leadership and commitment inspires us to make a difference on campus, in our communities, and for the future.

Charmi was selected based on her ability to embrace innovation and novel ways of thinking, to seek understanding of and engagement with diverse communities, to lead proactively, and to take on her bright futures with enthusiasm, savvy, and fortitude.

“Charmi is a natural leader,” writes Evans School Senior Assistant Dean of Students Carrie Evans. “Other students look to her for guidance, direction and support.  She is remarkably strategic, astute and tactical in how she has sought to build a successful and effective coalition of students, faculty and staff working collaboratively towards shared goals on critical issues pertaining to race, equity and inclusion.”

Charmi contributes to the Evans School community in many ways, including as a leading member of the student-led Curriculum Advocacy Team. The Curriculum Advocacy Team has been instrumental in engaging with faculty to more effectively integrate race, equity, and inclusion as a core element of their syllabi, course delivery, and approach to teaching. This work has been transformative for the Evans School, and Charmi has been at the forefront.

In Charmi’s own words: “I am humbled to be recognized as one of the Husky 100 and so proud of the work that the Curriculum Advocacy Team has done in partnership with Evans students, faculty, and staff. This is hard, generational work to change public policy education (and public policy!) to center equity and to be intersectional, anti-racist, and anti-oppression. COVID-19 and all of its repercussions are revealing just how vital it is to center equity in policy and what tremendous losses we suffer as a society when we don’t. We have a unique and powerful opportunity to set the curve for how public policy institutions all over the country think about who – and how – they serve. I am honored to help further this vital work.”  

The Husky 100 recognizes UW juniors, seniors and graduate students who are making the most of their Husky Experience, as demonstrated by the ways in which they fulfill the five program criteria. This year’s selection process was highly competitive, with more than 1,800 nominations and more than 600 applications from all three UW campuses.

Reimagining Our Future, From Home

Over the last few months, we have meditated on some important themes – of challenges overcome, the value of perseverance, and the critical investments we make in each other. But just as there is time for grit and determination, it is also vital to take time for reflection, remembrance, and renewal. This year, the transition to spring feels particularly meaningful.

The onset of longer days and warmer weather beckons us to spend precious moments outside, while close to home. Spring holidays – Easter, Passover, and this week, the start of Ramadan – provide a space for meditation, reflection, and community. Earth Day tomorrow also presents an occasion to acknowledge the natural world as a profound symbol for our own resilience, as well as to remember our role in stewarding and defending the air, water and land that support our very lives. All of this is evidence that we are connected in ways that are wide-ranging and powerful.

I recently rediscovered a line from the poem “On Houses” by Lebanon-born writer and artist Kahlil Gibran. It reads, “but you, children of space, you restless in rest, you shall not be trapped nor tamed. Your house shall be not an anchor but a mast.”

While we are at home –impatient for action and new beginnings – we have a chance to consider our own place in the world and the ways that our own privilege and opportunity form the basis of our ability to bring positive change. There is a different and undeniable strength in stillness. As we look to what lies ahead, let us use this time with intention to build a future that we are proud of, driven by shared values in the spirit of public service.