This week we are showcasing an episode from The Measure of Everyday Life, a podcast hosted by SSN member Brian Southwell. He spoke with Professor Deondra Rose about the policy moves that helped opened doors for women in higher education.

For More on This Topic:

• Read Rose’s piece for Inside Higher Ed in defense of “me” studies
• Check out Rose’s brief, How Federal Government Policies Have Helped Women Earn College Degrees
• Read her piece in Talking Points Memo on women in higher education

Further Reading:

• What We Know - and Need to Learn - about Progress against Sex Discrimination in Higher Education, Celene Reynolds,Yale University
• Why Higher Education is a Must for Low-Income Mothers, Lisa Dodson, Brandeis University, Luisa S. Deprez, University of Southern Maine

Congress is on the verge of passing major tax reform that many say is tilted in favor of the wealthy. This week we’re looking back at an episode with Professor Rick Hasen to explore why the wealthy often enjoy such outsized benefits and power in American politics - and how changing the Supreme Court is the best way to fix that.

For More on This Topic:

• Check out Hasen’s book, Plutocrats United
• Read his piece in The LA Times on Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch

Further Reading:

• Evidence that Legislators Grant Special Access to Donors, Joshua Kalla, University of California, Berkeley, David Broockman, Stanford University
• Why Campaign Finance Reforms That Weaken U.S. Parties Promote Extreme and Unresponsive Politics, Raymond J. La Raja, University of Massachusetts Amherst
• Episode 1: The Kochs, Americans For Prosperity, and the Right, Theda Skocpol, Harvard University

The neighborhoods we live in help shape our mental and physical health. Professor Antwan Jones explains what happens when some neighborhoods benefit from private and public investments while others are left behind, and what can be done to change this.

For more on This Topic:

• Check out Jones’ brief, The Health Consequences of Moving from Place to Place
• Read his opinion piece in The Baltimore Sun

Further Reading:

• Episode 19: Changing Neighborhoods for Better or for Worse, Jackelyn Hwang, Stanford University
• Have Reforms in U.S. Housing Assistance Reduced Neighborhood Poverty?, Ann Owens, University of South Carolina

Inequality is on the rise in America, but what’s behind it? Professor Steven Teles and Dr. Brink Lindsey lay out how federal and state policies help the rich get richer, slow economic growth, and promote inequality.

For More on This Topic:

• Check out Teles and Lindsey’s book, The Captured Economy
• Read their opinion piece in the New York Times

Further Reading:

• How States Can Fight Growing Economic Inequality, Megan E. Hatch, Cleveland State University, Elizabeth Rigby, The George Washington University
• Episode 82: Hidden Tax Benefits, Suzanne Mettler, Cornell University