Justice and Equity Research

How do we create a justice system that is fairer, more efficient, and more effective? Civil, criminal, and social justice policies affect populations at all levels, and student research is similarly wide-ranging. From work on the impacts of drug policies like marijuana legalization, to analysis of the ways that technology can impact policing and public safety — among many other topics — Pardee RAND students and faculty have a strong presence in the policy debate.

Student-Faculty Research Collaborations

Through project-based research and other experiential learning opportunities, students work with faculty mentors to obtain professional skills and tacit knowledge that courses alone cannot convey. Here are a few recent projects and their resulting research.

  • People line up for COVID-19 vaccines and booster doses at a McDonald's in Chicago, Illinois, December 21, 2021, photo by Jim Vondruska/Reuters

    Hyper-Local Strategies Are Working to Promote Vaccination Equity

    The Equity-First Vaccination Initiative, launched in summer 2021, has already made progress in reducing racial/ethnic disparities in U.S. COVID-19 vaccination rates. Lawrence Baker (cohort '19), Priya Gandhi ('20), Khadesia Howell ('20), and Rebecca Wolfe ('20)—working with Profs. Laura Faherty, Jeanne Ringel, and Malcolm Williams—found that hyper-local, community-led strategies are helping to increase vaccine confidence and access for communities that identify as Black, Indigenous, and people of color.

  • Cannabis leaf, photo by underworld/Adobe Stock

    Cannabis Legalization and Social Equity: Opportunities, Puzzles, and Trade-Offs

    Michelle Priest (cohort '19), Prof. Beau Kilmer, and colleagues describe some of the opportunities as well as some major puzzles and trade-offs surrounding the use of cannabis policy to advance social equity.

Explore Pardee RAND student-authored research on Justice and Equity »

Faculty Mentors

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Recent Dissertations

View all Pardee RAND dissertations