The Rose Review Spring 2020
Director’s Report Andrew E. Busch, PhD
T
his semester at the Rose Institute has been unlike anything any of us has experienced. Since saying goodbye to our students at Spring Break, we have been operating remotely. Just before Spring Break, as is our custom, we named our next set of student managers for the year. Congratulations to Ben McAnally and Jake Leischner, and thanks to Sophia Helland and Rachel Alaynick for a job well done. Incoming and outgoing student managers have worked with senior staff at the Rose to manage the new circumstances. Some effort was required to set up for productive remote work by the students. The College required all employees, including student employees, to submit a “Temporary Situational Telecommuting Agreement.” Additionally, numerous students required temporary software licenses to be able to continue work on their assigned projects. Our IT department was very accommodating in working with them to meet their needs. Our operating principle has been that, in this difficult time, students must focus on school, family, and their own health first. However, we also have proceeded with the view that to the extent that Rose work could be carried forward, we should do so. Some alterations were unavoidable. The Board of Governors meeting was cancelled, as were our speaker events. Two redistricting conferences were put off
3 - New Student Managers 4 - Project Updates 6 - Off-Campus Reflections 9 - Senior Farewell 12 - In Memoriam
from April 15 and June 8 to later in the year, with the possibility that the event might be online or a hybrid online-in person conference. Other projects have continued. These include: Publications: Our Spring edition of the Inland Empire Outlook was published, featuring a series of articles on redistricting. Of course, we also went forward with publishing this edition of the Rose Review. Federalism: Earlier in the semester, our federalism team completed stage 1 of its project on federalism issues in the presidential race. Posted online, the project looks at the positions of major Democratic contenders on issues such as immigration, marijuana, education, and energy. They are nearly done with a summary look at how the federal Coronavirus stimulus package affects state and local governments. Local spending on homelessness: In cooperation with the Cicero Institute, a new public policy think tank, a team of Rose students is doing an analysis of local spending on anti-homelessness expenditures. City of Ontario: This Spring, the Rose Institute signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the City of Ontario to conduct a study for the city every semester for the next several years. Work by students will begin in the Fall, but senior staff is working with the city now