Public Policy
Course Title: Population Change in the United States: The Demographic Shift’s Impact on Public Policy
Day & Time: Thursdays, 2:00pm - 5:00pm
This course provides students with a foundational understanding of public policy, focusing on domestic policy challenges in the United States. It explores the institutions, interests, and ideologies that shape policy decisions, with special attention to the intersection of race, inequality, and demographic shifts in population change. Notably, by the year 2050 there will no longer be any clear racial and ethnic majority in the United States, and already the majority of children born today are children of color. This course will examine the policy implications of this demographic shift, given the current racial and ethnic disparities in education, employment, health, and other social services that threaten the nation’s economic future. We will pay special attention to the integration of social science evidence on this topic; accordingly, students will be expected to complete a variety of assigned readings—academic, peer-reviewed work; policy reports; public polling data and case studies.
Julie Ajinkya
Julie is currently a Principal at HCM Strategists, an impact-driven consulting firm that believes in the transformative power of education and work-based learning to improve social and economic mobility. Ajinkya's research and advocacy expertise focuses on innovative models that improve degree completion for underserved populations, such as students of color, returning adults, justice-involved communities, and rural communities.
Julie has also served as the Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer at Asian Pacific Islander American (APIA) Scholars, the Vice President of Applied Research at the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP), and on the Progress 2050 team at the Center for American Progress (CAP). Julie has served as a Visiting Professor with Cornell's Brooks School of Public Policy, teaching courses on race, inequality, and public policy,
