The Heller Difference: People. Practice. Impact. by Brandeis University

BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY

ANNUAL REPORT FY2012

THE HELLER DIFFERENCE PEOPLE. PRACTICE. IMPACT.

THE HELLER SCHOOL FOR SOCIAL POLICY AND MANAGEMENT KNOWLEDGE ADVANCING SOCIAL JUSTICE

Contents

People

Financials

Practice

Enrollment

Impact

WELCOME FROM THE DEAN I am pleased to share this report on Brandeis University’s Heller School for Social Policy and Management’s fy12 activities. Last year’s annual report highlighted the significant social policy research being done in our centers and institutes. This year’s report focuses on our educational programs. In these pages, you will see examples of how a Heller education transforms our students and enables them to find and advance solutions to some of the world’s most pressing social issues. The effectiveness of our educational programs is due to both the quality of our faculty and the extraordinary background of our students. Students at Heller come from more than 60 countries, and they measure success not by the trajectory of their own career but by the accomplishments of the populations they serve. As Heller students, these remarkable women and men become part of an environment that is as diverse in background and expertise as it is united in its commitment to advancing social justice. Our community is widely known for its warmth and welcome. It is also a community of robust discussion and debate, as we bring our collective wisdom and differing perspectives to bear on pressing issues, arriving at insights impossible to achieve without active collaboration.

We hold a deep respect for our students, one reflected in the design of our curriculum and research. Our students are the best judges of the knowledge and skills they need, so we have designed our six degree programs to be highly permeable — inviting students to tailor courses of study to their needs. As a result, our students become effective social-change agents who possess the analytical and management skills to successfully address disparities in well-being and to promote social inclusion in a sustainable way. I am pleased to introduce you to a few of these remarkable individuals in this fy12 annual report. To learn more about the Heller community and the impact we make, please visit our website at heller.brandeis.edu.

Lisa M. Lynch Dean and Maurice B. Hexter Professor of Social and Economic Policy

PEOPLE. PRACTICE. IMPACT.

IT BEGINS WITH THE PEOPLE THE HELLER SCHOOL ATTRACTS — ACCOMPLISHED INDIVIDUALS ALREADY MAKING A DIFFERENCE, BUT DRIVEN TO DO MORE. HERE, STUDENTS PRACTICE SCHOLARSHIP AND REAL-WORLD INTERVENTIONS IN EQUAL MEASURE, DEVELOPING NEW INSIGHTS INTO CAUSES AND SOLUTIONS. THE IMPACT THEY MAKE IS A SOURCE OF PRIDE FOR THE HELLER COMMUNITY AND, MORE IMPORTANT, CONTRIBUTES TO SIGNIFICANT, LASTING CHANGE. IT IS THE HELLER DIFFERENCE. SEE IT AT WORK AROUND THE WORLD.

PEOPLE HELLER STUDENTS, ALUMNI AND FACULTY ARE AS DIVERSE IN BACKGROUND AND EXPERTISE AS THEY ARE UNITED IN THEIR COMMITMENT TO ADVANCING SOCIAL JUSTICE. TOGETHER, THEY TEST OLD ASSUMPTIONS, GAIN NEW INSIGHTS AND DEVELOP THE SKILLS NEEDED TO FILL LEADERSHIP POSITIONS ACROSS THE SOCIAL POLICY AND MANAGEMENT LANDSCAPE.

COMMITMENT

Despite being raised in a culture opposed to the schooling of girls, Grace Majiakusi, MA/SID’13, always believed in the power of education. Her Maasai village’s first female college graduate, she worked with the Naretoi Girl Child Project to create girl-friendly learning environments. A desire to shape programs and policy led the Ford Foundation Fellow to Heller, where she quickly began to gain and share insights that are helping to improve educational opportunities in Kenya. Such unwavering commitment in the face of formidable barriers is common at Heller. Growing up in East Africa, Aflodis Kagaba, MS’12, saw communities ravaged by preventable diseases. He was inspired to practice medicine, and then to complete Heller’s master of science in international health policy and management. Kagaba co-founded Health Development Initiative-Rwanda. The nonprofit promotes health and development in disadvantaged communities, addressing issues from malaria to HIV/AIDS, and provides services including physician training and policy monitoring. DIVERSITY

PhD candidate Angélique K. Rwiyereka, MS’07, MA’10, was a young physician in Rwanda when she began to focus on flaws in the health care system. Brian Schon ’06, MBA/MPP’11, was attending a Heller course when he learned of the primary-care physician shortage and its alarming implications for the U.S. health care system. While Rwiyereka and Schon differ vastly in their background and experience, they share a passionate dedication to change within health care systems. This is a defining characteristic of the Heller com-

PEOPLE

munity — where diverse perspectives are powerfully united by the desire to effect change. Here, collaboration is automatic, and the transcendence of traditional academic boundaries leads to innovative solutions to long-standing challenges. The result is highly effective leaders such as Rwiyereka, who has served as director general of the Rwanda Ministry of Health, and Schon, director of policy and strategy at Primary Care Progress. EXPERTISE

The Heller School attracts early- and mid-career professionals. Along with faculty who are practi tioners as well as scholars, they contribute to an intellectually engaging environment. Doctoral candidate Maria Timberlake arrived at Heller with more than 20 years of experience in teaching children with disabilities — and a world of insight into the gap between policy and classroom results. As a fellow at the Lurie Institute for Disability Policy, Timberlake worked on a study that examined the quality of the health care received by Latino children with autism. Her dissertation focuses on special-education policy. As an attorney, Andrew Ian Ginsberg, MA/ COEX’08, knew much about the legal and institutional aspects of resolving conflict. At Heller, he learned to view this complex issue from a variety of perspectives. “I remember discussing conflict transformation with a diplomat, a former military officer, a businesswoman, a priest and a psychologist, to name a few,” he says. His Heller education served him well as a United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees protection officer in Pristina, Kosovo.

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN

SOCIAL POLICY With four broad concentrations, 10 research institutes and centers, and five other degree programs to draw upon, Heller PhD students are able to tailor courses of study to meet their goals. As with all Heller degree programs, an interdisciplinary approach is heavily emphasized, with equal focus placed on conceptual, analytical, qualitative and quantitative skills. Research design, methods and experience form the core of the Heller PhD program, with many graduates pursuing social policy research careers in academia, private organizations or government. Other graduates choose to use their research education as a platform for applying the research of others in policy足making, practice or advocacy.

MASTER OF

PUBLIC POLICY As public policy becomes increasingly complex, understanding the language, the research, the organizations and the leaders within specialized areas is crucial. Heller MPP students select a concentration that supplements the core curriculum and provides deeper expertise in a particular arena: children, youth and families; poverty alleviation; health; behavioral health; aging policy and services; or general social policy. Within each concentration, faculty resources and research centers of the Heller School enrich the academic and research environments. We equip students with everything they need to become immediately valued members of top organizations in the public, private and nonprofit sectors.

GUSTAVO PAYAN

MA/SID’03

Empowering people in developing countries has been a constant theme for Gustavo Payan. Though he was able to attend private schools through scholarships, Payan was aware of the social and economic exclusion around him in his hometown of Juárez, Chihuahua, in Mexico. Even while he pursued an international business degree, he spent his spare time volunteering with youth and indigenous people. Not long after graduating, Payan decided to pursue an MA in Sustainable International Development at the Heller School. As part of the program, he completed a practicum with Educational Development Center (EDC), a global nonprofit organization that designs, delivers and evaluates programs in education, health and economic opportunity in 35 countries. Payan now serves as a project director in EDC’s International Development Division, providing managerial and technical support to programs around the world.

KATE

FITZGERALD

MBA’12

Working for the GreenLight Fund, which identifies and supports the expansion of high-performing nonprofits, Kate Fitzgerald meets impressive social entrepreneurs. Often, they have creative, promising ideas but lack sound implementation strategies. “It’s frustrating to see a really innovative initiative fail because no one could point to the indicators they were working toward, or they were failing to evaluate results,” she says. Fitzgerald hopes to use her MBA to provide expertise in strategy and quantitative evaluation to some of these visionaries. She believes her skills will be in demand in both the nonprofit and the corporate worlds. As she puts it, “Nonprofits can do good and be profitable, just as corporations can be profitable and do good.” Currently, Fitzgerald is working with the Heller School’s Sillerman Center for the Advancement of Philanthropy to demonstrate the importance of board members to nonprofits and identify best practices.

PEOPLE

SARAH EMOND, MPPâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;09, is COO of the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review, an organization providing health care decision-makers with comprehensive evidence of the clinical effectiveness and comparative value of drugs, devices, procedures and systems of care.

PRACTICE THE HELLER DIFFERENCE IS CLEAR IN OUR DAY-TO-DAY APPROACH TO STUDY AND EXPLORATION. FIRST, WE INTEGRATE ACADEMICS AND RESEARCH; THE SCHOOL’S SIX DEGREE PROGRAMS AND TEN RESEARCH INSTITUTES CONTINUALLY INFORM AND STRENGTHEN ONE ANOTHER. SECOND, WE ENCOURAGE ONGOING COLLABORATION AMONG EXPERTS IN FIELDS RANGING FROM ECONOMICS AND POLITICAL SCIENCE TO SOCIOLOGY. THIRD, WE DEMONSTRATE A STRONG COMMITMENT TO BOTH SCHOLARLY ANALYSIS AND EFFECTIVE INTERVENTIONS.

SCHOLARSHIP

Through careful study, Heller faculty, students and alumni strive to deepen our understanding of the social issues we face. Heller’s Institute on Assets and Social Policy has shown that the wealth gap between white and African-American families increased more than 400 percent between 1984 and 2007. Alexandra Bastien, MPP’12, coded followup interviews with research participants, helping to track changes in economic status. “I was in the poverty concentration in the master’s program, and I am African-American, so working with leading researchers examining poverty along racial lines is an amazing opportunity,” Bastien says. Janet Poppendieck, MA’72, PhD’79, has spent decades researching poverty, hunger and food assistance in the U.S. Her latest book reveals the connection between nutrition and education. “Free for All: Fixing School Food in America” has drawn widespread praise for its analysis of school food programs. Poppendieck reveals the social, political and financial forces that created the current system, and shows how poor nutrition threatens children’s health and learning abilities.

In addition to engaging communities served, nonprofits must be effective at generating support in the wider community. Pem Brown, MPP’11, senior associate at M+R Strategic Services, helps nonprofits do just that. Recently, he and his colleagues helped to drive a record-breaking 1.1 million comments to the FDA in support of labeling genetically engineered foods. Brown has also helped USAgainstAlzheimer’s mobilize people living with Alzheimer’s, family members, caregivers and other concerned individuals to advocate for eradicating this disease. EVALUATION

Through her work with Heller’s Institute for Behavioral Health, doctoral candidate Amity Quinn is helping to assess how health care legislation is affecting consumer access to behavioral health services, gaining formidable research skills along the way. “The survey research and sampling methods I’ve learned, combined with incredible mentorship, are helping to make me the researcher I want to be,” says Quinn. Her dissertation will examine the coordination of primary care with treatment for severe mental illness and substanceuse disorders.

ENGAGEMENT

Through research with Heller’s Institute for Behavioral Health within the Schneider Institutes for Health Policy, doctoral candidate Rachel Sayko Adams is shedding new light on factors impacting behavioral health among active-duty military personnel. Her dissertation examines the association between combat-acquired traumatic brain injury and unhealthy drinking behaviors among military personnel upon their return from deployment. Adams’ dissertation has implications for clinical care and policy that could contribute to more effective prevention and treatment, and improved force readiness.

PRACTICE

In her current role as senior technical adviser at the USAID Office of HIV/AIDS, Ugochukwu Amanyeiwe, MS’07, supports the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of both centrally and country-mission funded initiatives. She also works with various global stakeholders, including WHO, UNAIDS, UNICEF and DFID, to develop globally accepted strategies for HIV/ AIDS care and support programs.

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION IN

NONPROFIT MANAGEMENT Being part of a school of social policy historically ranked among the top 10 by U.S. News and World Report sets the Heller MBA program apart. Further distinguishing the MBA program are a number of experiential learning components, including threemonth team consulting engagements and a Board Fellows program that gives students nonvoting roles on boards of actual nonprofits. Real-world experience combined with rigorous coursework helps the program deliver skills sought after by todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mission-oriented organizations, which often exist at the intersection of the for-profit and nonprofit sectors.

MASTER OF ARTS IN

SUSTAINABLE INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT Recognized globally as a leader in the training of development practitioners and policymakers, Heller has designed its MA/SID degree to be one of the largest, most innovative course offerings of any development program. Each year, approximately two-thirds of MA/SID students come from developing nations, typically representing more than 60 countries, speaking over 100 languages and lending incredible breadth and depth to the examination of issues such as poverty, environmental degradation and inequality. Graduates can be found in all regions of the world, with alumni holding leadership positions at key development organizations in the U.S. and abroad.

BEVIN CROFT

MPP’10, DOCTORAL CANDIDATE

Consumer- and participant-directed programs allow persons with disabilities to select and purchase their own disabilityrelated services. When offered to seniors or people with physical and developmental disabilities, these delivery models increase satisfaction with services and quality of life while containing costs. Bevin Croft, a National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Fellow, believes the self-directed service delivery approach will produce significant benefits if widely applied in behavioral health. “Preliminary evaluations of small pilot programs show promising results,” she says. “We are examining key barriers and facilitators, filling knowledge gaps to understand the next steps of taking behavioral health selfdirection to scale.” Croft hopes to see the model adopted on a large scale for those with substance use and mental health issues, and to play a role in examining program implementation and measuring outcomes.

JACKIE OKANGA

MA/COEX/SID’13

Jackie Okanga was an experienced human rights lawyer when she traveled to northern Uganda to work in internally displaced person camps. Seeing the need for more effective resettlement policies and programs, she decided to pursue Heller’s dual degree master’s programs in Coexistence and Conflict, and Sustainable International Development. “I considered several schools but am grateful that I chose Heller,” she says. “There are students from all over the world here, working on similar issues but from different perspectives. And every professor has practical experience, having been on the ground in places like Uganda. I already have so much more insight. I’m eager to return to Uganda with the tools to measure the programs I helped put in place, along with the knowledge to help make those programs stronger.”

PRACTICE

In her role as program policy adviser for Oxfam America, MARIA EZPELETA, MA/SIDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;07, supports development programs across East Asia and works to advance Oxfamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s global gender justice goals.

As a student, PAULA PARIS, MMHSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;79, was a valued researcher at Hellerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Center for Youth and Communities. As deputy director of JFYNetWorks, Paris has successfully led the nonprofit education and job-training innovator through outcomes measurement, social enterprise development and other strategic initiatives.

IMPACT LOOK ALMOST ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD, AND YOU CAN SEE THE IMPACT MADE BY THE PEOPLE OF HELLER — FROM SWEEPING POLICY INITIATIVES AFFECTING MILLIONS OF LIVES, TO SOCIAL PROGRAMS STRENGTHENING COMMUNITIES ONE FAMILY AT A TIME. ABOVE ALL ELSE, WE SEEK TO USE THE KNOWLEDGE WE GAIN TO ADVANCE SOCIAL JUSTICE.

THEORY

As a research associate at the Heller School’s Relational Coordination Research Collaborative within the Schneider Institutes for Health Policy, doctoral candidate Saleema Moore is helping to advance understanding of organizational issues in health care settings. Moore’s dissertation explores how organizations enact, coordinate and manage change and how this process impacts the outcomes of change and organizational performance. Her work is shedding light on operations and management issues in health care, and has made her a valued consultant to organizations including the Institute for Healthcare Improvement and Freedman Healthcare.

on several initiatives, including disaster response efforts in Haiti. Today, as country director for Argentina, Chile and Uruguay in the U.S. Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, she serves as a policy analyst and adviser to senior defense officials on politico-military issues and other aspects of U.S. defense relations, including security cooperation. “I’m indebted to the Heller School for the analytical skills and practical insights that I put to use every day,” she says. Education and defense are just two of many areas in which Heller students, faculty and alumni are helping to shape more effective social policy. IMPLEMENTATION

As a research assistant at Heller’s Institute for Behavioral Health, doctoral candidate Margaret O’Brien has helped further our understanding of the risks and protective factors associated with alcohol and substance use during pregnancy. For her dissertation, O’Brien is exploring several theories, including her hypothesis that a combination of stressors and the initiation of substance use before age 14 increases the likelihood of prenatal substance use. POLICY

Anna O’Connor, MPP’09, works in the delivery unit of the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Recently, the unit predicted that completion of MassCore (the state’s recommended high-school course of study) will contribute significantly to college and career readiness. “The delivery team helped develop state policy recommendations designed to incentivize completion of MassCore,” O’Connor says. “If adopted, the policy changes will ensure that more students take this important step toward success in postsecondary education and careers.” As a 2009 Presidential Management Fellow, Jessie Babcock, MBA’09, worked for the Pentagon

IMPACT

Whether it’s responding with immediacy to a sudden natural disaster or gaining a full understanding of a population’s needs, Heller graduates are expert at effective implementation. Akiko Mera, MA/SID’05, had been executive director of Oxfam Japan for less than two years when a severe earthquake and tsunami struck the northeast coast. Understanding the Japanese state’s extensive emergency relief capabilities, Mera could focus on those in need of more-specific assistance. Under her direction, Oxfam Japan partnered with local organizations to aid non-Japanese speakers, persons with disabilities, and others. While a student, Brenna Schneider, MBA’12, consulted for American MoJo, a social enterprise that supports single mothers’ employment and child care needs. Today, as the organization’s vice president for operations, Schneider is implementing initiatives to create more jobs and help employees develop greater skills. “We want to show that American businesses can compete successfully and offer benefits that protect an employee’s future,” says Schneider.

MASTER OF SCIENCE IN

INTERNATIONAL HEALTH POLICY AND MANAGEMENT Heller offers an MS degree that attracts early- and midcareer professionals eager to bring innovative solutions to their home country or international health organizations. The program equips them with the skills health care policymakers and managers need to succeed in policy analysis, planning and implementation, and to contribute to the building and financing of national health systems. Heller graduates serve as advocates, policymakers and managers within organizations and government ministries, working toward equitable and sustainable access to health care for all.

MASTER OF ARTS IN

COEXISTENCE AND CONFLICT Hellerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s COEX program attracts mid-career professionals, most from outside the U.S., dedicated to the thorough examination of current strategies and innovative approaches to conflict resolution and peaceful coexistence. With equal emphasis on scholarship and field research and a commitment to interdisciplinary study, the program provides students with the knowledge base and real-world experiences that position them for leadership in NGOs and governments worldwide. Heller offers a dual degree in Sustainable International Development and Coexistence and Conflict, in recognition of the fact that conflict is often the result of economic and environmental factors.

IMPACT

ANYA

RADER WALLACK

PHD’07

Analyzing and formulating complex policy, and clearly articulating the real-world implications are critical to successful health care reform. Anya Rader Wallack is a master of both. As part of Hillary Clinton’s Task Force on National Health Care Reform and as Governor Howard Dean’s deputy chief of staff, she proved herself a sharp-minded policy expert and an effective liaison. In her current role as chair of Vermont’s Green Mountain Care Board, her skills are serving her well. “I am honored to be working on such a historic piece of reform,” she says. “It will enhance the health care experience for patients and providers, providing access to high-quality health care services for all Vermonters, while reducing health care cost growth.” In addition to her work with the state of Vermont, Rader Wallack is president of Arrowhead Health Analytics.

TANWIR AHMAD

MS’13

Working in India’s poorest communities on grassroots health issues, Tanwir Ahmad developed an unwavering commitment to public health. He worked for UNICEF, CARE India and Public Health Resource Network India before joining Aga Khan Rural Support Program India as manager of health. Wanting to create greater impact at the system level, Ahmad decided to return to school to study health policy and management. He is attending the Heller School’s International Health Policy and Management program on a Ford Foundation International Fellowship. “World-class faculty, robust teaching methodology, and peers from across the globe create a unique learning environment,” he says. “I will be returning to India with the knowledge and best practices to significantly strengthen its public health system.”

IMPACT

MONISHA MUKHERJEE, MA/SID’09, IIE/Ford Foundation Fellow, was a project manager executive for the Professional Assistance for Development Action in India, where she worked on enterprise and socio economic development projects 21 withIMPACT the rural poor.

FINANCIAL OVERVIEW

HELLER SCHOOL FOR SOCIAL POLICY AND MANAGEMENT FISCAL FACTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED JUNE 30, 2012 (IN MILLIONS) REVENUES Gross Tuition & Fees Sponsored Research Revenue Current Use Gifts Endowment Support Total Revenue

14.7 17.4 2.4 2.0 36.5

EXPENSES Financial Aid Salaries, Wages & Fringe Current Use Gift Expenses Operating Expenses Sponsored Research Expenses Total Expenses

6.9 9.2 2.0 1.1 14.4 33.6

Contribution to Brandeis University for Overhead Cost

2.9

48%

43%

27%

7% 5% 3%

40%

21%

Gross Tuition & Fees

Financial Aid