Winter 2024 Letter from Director Joe Hoereth
Our Director Dr. Joseph Hoereth rounds up 2024
Friends of IPCE,
I hope everyone has had a great end to the fall semester. I always look forward to this time of year, as reflecting on our impact catalyzes the work ahead. I'm excited to share what we here at the Institute have been working on this past semester, and to look forward to what's next in the new year.
In August we welcomed 14 undergraduate students in the Urban Public Policy Fellowship (UPPF) program for the 2024-2025 academic year, and they are already hard at work at their internship sites. This cohort represents a large array of policy and research interests, and I am excited to see their progression as leaders as they navigate internships and research projects throughout the academic year. We also welcomed three Graduate Mentors for the program: Marcus Daniels, Karlie Sanchez, and Alexander Diaz. Read more about their backgrounds and the experience they are bringing to the program on our staff page here.
This past semester, we partnered with UIC Student Leadership and Civic Engagement to co host two events leading up to the 2024 presidential election. These events consisted of a screening of UNDIVIDE US, a rallying call to Americans eager to break free from the cycle of toxic polarization and cultivate change in their communities, and an open space student dialogue session “Amplifying Voices: Building and Engaged Campus for All”, where students came together to discuss ideas and strategies related to creating a more inclusive campus environment.
On November 19th, Dr. Delphine Labbé, Assistant Professor in the Department of Disability and Human Development, presented “I do not want your cookies”: People with disabilities’ experiences of claiming power on advisory committees to improve accessibility in their communities as a part of our Civic Engagement Lunch Talk series. She was accompanied by her co-PI Dr. Yochai Eisenberg, Associate Professor in the Departments of Disability and Human Development and Rehabilitation Sciences. Their talk presented a project that explored the experiences of people with disabilities on advisory committees to improve accessibility of their communities. The purpose of the study was to better understand how they perceive their engagement in this civic role and its impact both for themselves and their community. Dr. Labbé and team conducted four focus groups with 26 participants with disabilities who served on local government advisory committees in the Midwest region. The presentation highlighted the main findings from these discussions and recommendations for supporting civic engagement of people with disabilities.
We are excited to announce the research projects that the Institute will help fund this year as part of our Civic Engagement Research Awards. The four faculty members are: Kate Albrecht, PhD, Assistant Professor, Affiliated faculty, Government Finance Research Center and Networks and Governance Lab, Public Policy, Management and Analytics, College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs, Jenna Prochaska, Assistant Professor of Law, UIC Law, Barbara Sostaita, PhD, Assistant Professor, LALS, College of Liberal Arts and Science, and Tanja Aitamurto, PhD, Assistant Professor, Communication, College of Liberal Arts and Science. We look forward to the profound insights and contributions of their work.
We have continued to work on our ongoing projects with our partners, including the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS), Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP), the Office of Firearm Violence Prevention (OFVP), the The Independent Monitoring Team for the Chicago Police Consent Decree, and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago.
Please keep us on your radar as we continue to announce upcoming IPCE and IPCE-sponsored events and initiatives, and bookmark our website and socials for updates on all things about the Institute!
Have a wonderful start to your new year,
Joseph K. Hoereth, PhD