Faye Wattleton
Photo by Greg Mancuso/RAND Corporation
Through the generous support of David I. J. Wang, a member of the Dean's Leadership Circle at the Pardee RAND Graduate School, the school held its second summer faculty workshop in Santa Monica, Calif., in July.
The intense, weeklong workshop is for visiting scholars who teach at historically black colleges and universities. Faculty from Howard University, Jackson State University, and the University of Texas Southwestern were among this year's participants. The goal is to help them not only strengthen their own approach to research but also to bring new analytic thinking, tools, and practices back to students in classes at their home institutions, inspiring them to pursue graduate education and careers in public policy.
Participants presented policy briefings on their research interests, including the aging Latino population, unemployment among African American males, "diabesity" (management of chronic conditions related to obesity), and climate change.
Faye Wattleton, a member of the Pardee RAND Graduate School Board of Governors, delivered the keynote address. Wattleton is the managing director at Alvarez & Marsal and is former president and CEO of Planned Parenthood, where she was the youngest and first female and African American to head that organization.
According to Susan Marquis, dean of the graduate school, “The Summer Faculty Workshop is part of the commitment by Pardee RAND to ensure that the most diverse minds and voices possible address society's pressing issues.”