NEWS AND UPDATES
 

The costs and benefits of free public transportation

Taubman Center Visiting Fellow Samantha Silverberg explains how New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s plans to make buses fare-free could reshape mobility in the nation’s largest city.

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Supporting leaders, embracing transitions

As transition time is once again upon us, look back at one Transition Term team's experience supporting North Carolina Governor Josh Stein.

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State-level transportation and infrastructure

Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) Shoshana Lew on the evolving role of state DOTs and how HKS students support CDOT's work.

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Students trek through New Hampshire

HKS students experience rural economic development in New Hampshire firsthand through the Taubman Center’s Economic Development Seminar.

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DEVELOPING THE NEXT GENERATION OF STATE AND LOCAL LEADERS
State, county, city, and town governments need talented young leaders who are passionate about finding solutions to policy challenges. Through experiential learning opportunities, fellowships, and career mentorship and connections, the Taubman Center helps connect students who are dedicated to state and local public service with governments that need their support.
 

Transition Term

Transition Term embeds HKS students in the offices of newly-elected mayors, governors, and county officials during January Term to help these officials accelerate key initiatives as they shift from campaigning to governing.

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Economic Development Seminar

This monthly non-credit seminar for HKS students convenes leading economic development thinkers and doers from around the country to engage on state, county, and city best practices and shared challenges. 

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Treks

Student-led, Taubman Center supported treks allow HKS students to meet state and local leaders in cities and towns across the country and explore how these communities approach policymaking. 

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Policy Analysis Exercise & Taubman Urban Prize

We connect state and local governments with students as part of a Policy Analysis Exercise (PAE), the capstone experience for HKS's MPP curriculum. PAE students are also eligible for the Taubman Urban Prize. 

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GENERATING BIG IDEAS AND SOLUTIONS TO STATE AND LOCAL CHALLENGES
The Taubman Center supports an intellectual community where faculty, fellows, students, and research staff can productively deliver urban and rural research and teaching, as well as interact with each other to stimulate, support, and critique these endeavors. Explore recent research highlights below.
 

Campaign Contributions and Housing Policy

What are the effects of municipal campaign contributions on housing policy? Associate Professor of Public Policy Justin de Benedictis-Kessner and co-author Jennifer Gaudette explore data from over three million municipal election campaigns to gain insight.  

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Health Insurance Subsidies and Local Impact

Associate Professor of Public Policy Mark Shepard explains the subsidies that were at the center of the government shutdown and the effects of their expiration on state and local government

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A Partisan Solution to Partisan Gerrymandering

Is there a way to reduce partisan gerrymandering without requiring a neutral third part of bipartisan agreement? Associate Professor of Public Policy Benjamin Schneer proposes the Define-Combine Procedure to do just that in a new paper. 

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HELPING STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT IMPLEMENT AND SCALE SOLUTIONS
The Taubman Center seeks to support and improve state, county, city, and town government by spreading and implementing ideas and solutions through our communities of practice, technical assistance, and HKS executive education.
 

Innovations in 911 Response

A Government Performance Lab case study series shares lessons learned from Durham, NC’s Community Safety Department, one of the nation’s largest alternative response programs, which dispatches specially trained, unarmed professionals to handle low-risk 911 calls. 

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Affordable Housing Finance

Cities across the country face an affordable housing crisis. A new webinar hosted by the Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston explores innovative financing solutions for affordable housing with local housing experts.

Watch the Webinar
 

Including Risk in Your AI Assessment

How can municipalities assess the potential benefits and risk of deploying AI to support governmental services? A new working paper co-authored by Lecturer Mark Fagan outlines a "thinking slow" strategy to enumerate the risks and opportunities of AI. 

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Alumni Feature: Miro Weinberger MPP/UP 1998

Miro Weinberger grew up with a keen interest in public service, thanks to nightly conversations around the dinner table. "I just had the sense that government mattered and that it was a way to improve the world and help your neighbors and your community," he shares. After navigating the Great Recession as a nonprofit housing developer, Miro felt ready to run for office himself and went on to serve 12 years as the Mayor of Burlington, VT. 

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