This week we are highlighting an episode from Have You Heard, a podcast co-hosted by SSN member Jack Schneider and journalist Jennifer Berkshire. They spoke with Sally Nuamah about the long-term effects of school closures on communities, like declining voter turnout.

For more on this topic:

• Read Nuamah’s paper, The paradox of educational attitudes: Racial differences in public opinion on school closure or check out her website.
• Find more episodes of Have You Heard online or wherever you get your podcasts

Further reading:

• How (and why) to build a better measure of school quality, Jack Schneider, College of the Holy Cross
• Standardized Ratings of Urban Public Schools Ignore Contributions to their Students and Communities, Keith Eric Benson, Camden City School District
• Does Public Education Improve When Urban Districts Manage A “Portfolio” of Schools? , Katrina Elizabeth Bulkey, Montclair State University

As Republicans move forward with their tax overhaul, this week’s episode revisits Vanessa Williamson’s interview on the misconception that Americans hate taxes. She outlines how anti-tax policies became popular despite the fact that most Americans support increasing taxes for services they care about.  

For more on this topic:

• Read her brief, Who Pays America’s Taxes?, with Alexander Hertel-Fernandez, Columbia University
• Check out her opinion piece on Trump’s original tax plan during the 2016 campaign.

Further Reading:

• How Republican Approaches to Social Spending Increase Income Inequality in the United States , Christopher Faricy, Syracuse University
• Reforming Tax Policy for the Wealthiest One Percent, Michael Nau, The Ohio Colleges of Medicine Government Resource Center

Political rumors are spreading across the country and the widening divide between parties is only making them more potent. Professor Adam Berinsky discusses where these rumors come from and what, if anything, can be done to combat them.

For More on This Topic:

• Read Berinsky’s brief, What Works - and What Doesn’t - To Discredit Harmful Rumors And Correct Information
• Check out his feature and a web extra on an episode of Full Frontal with Samantha Bee

Further Reading:

• How a Citizen’s Initiative Review Improve Elections Where Voters Directly Decide on Policy Issues, John Gastil, Pennsylvania State University
• Episode 13: The Misinformation Age, Brian G. Southwell, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

For the final act of the live show, Professors Erin O’Brien and Peter Ubertaccio tackle Massachusetts politics. They dig into the character of the Democratic and Republican parties in the state, and show how the state isn’t as deep blue as many think.

For More on This Topic:

• Check out O’Brien, Ubertaccio, and other scholars on WGBH’s MassPoliticsProfs blog
• Watch the live show video to see full show and audience Q&A

Further Reading:

• Massachusetts as a Surprising Pioneer in the Turn to Mandatory Sentencing as a Response to Crime, Charles Houston Decker, Yale University
• Episode 2: Voter Fraud or Voter Suppression?, Erin O’Brien, University of Massachusetts Boston

For the second act of the live show, Professors Deondra Rose and Gunther Peck dive deep into North Carolina’s contentious politics, the impacts of the state’s voting laws and redistricting efforts, and what these deep divides say about national politics.

For More on This Topic:

• Read Peck’s piece, Learning the Right Lessons from Defeat: Organizing a New Democratic Majority in North Carolina
• Listen to Rose’s interview on North Carolina Public Radio

Further Reading:

• How Conservatives Rewrote North Carolina Election Laws to Discourage Voter Participation, Marion Johnson, NC Justice Center
• How Colleges in North Carolina- And Beyond- Can Help Students Vote, Laura Elise Bennett, Duke University

In the first of three acts for the 100th episode live show, Professors Theda Skocpol and René Flores discuss the role of national and local organizations on the 2016 election outcome, the Trump presidency so far, and what comes next.

For More on This Topic:

• Read Skocpol’s briefs, Making Sense of the Koch Network and Why U.S. Conservatives Shape Legislation across the Fifty States Much More Effectively than Liberals
• Check out Flores’ brief, How Restrictive Laws Can Influence Public Attitudes Towards Immigrants

Further Reading:

• Episode 57: Election Autopsy, Theda Skocpol, Harvard University
• Episode 93: Melting Pot, Boiling Pot, René Flores, University of Washington
• Donald Trump and the Dynamics of American Public Opinion about Racial Profiling, Deborah Schildkraut, Tufts University

Foster parents and social workers help children in difficult situations, but too often they lack the resources they need. Professor Antonio Garcia describes how this impacts foster children and what a focus on prevention could look like.

For More on This Topic:

• Read Garcia’s brief, To Counter Child Abuse, Administrators and Case Workers Need Support to Implement Evidence-Based Improvements

Further Reading:

• Why U.S. States Vary in Their Responses to Child Abuse and Neglect, Frank Edwards, Cornell University
• How America's Head Start Program Improves the Lives of Children and Families, Anne Day Leong, National Institutes of Health

High costs are making college unaffordable, or even impossible, for many Americans. Professor Nicholas Hillman outlines why student loan debt has become such a major issue. Professor Laura Perna highlights a potential solution -- free tuition programs.

For More on This Topic:

• Read Hillman’s brief, Designing Better Ways to Regulate Colleges with Too Many Students Who Default on Federal Loans
• Check out Perna’s research project on college promise programs.

Further Reading:

• Episode 52: Paying the Price, Sara Goldrick-Rab, Temple University
• Episode 4: The Student Debt Crisis, Nicholas Hillman, University of Wisconsin-Madison
• Making Loans Work for Today's College Students, Susan Dynarski, University of Michigan

Voting is a pillar of American democracy, but for many, the vote has been out of reach. Professor Doug Spencer explains the past and present of the right to vote in America, and how debates about voter fraud are missing the mark.

For More on This Topic:

• Read his brief, How Surveys Can Strengthen the Voting Rights Act

Further Reading:

• The Dismantling of the Voting Rights Act, Dewey M. Clayton, University of Louisville
• Restoring the Voting Rights Act Will Not Do Enough to Ensure Fair Elections, Amel Ahmed, University of Massachusetts Amherst

How do policymakers sort through all the information they get? Jenni Owen discusses how she and the office of North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper engage with research, and offers do’s and don’ts for researchers and advocates who want to inform policy.