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Chris Hauck

By Taylor Pedersen, CLA Student Writer - November 27, 2024

From a childhood love of video games to a career at a leading gaming company, Chris Hauck, Ph.D. ‘24, has made his passion his profession. This fall, Hauck will begin a new position as a full-time researcher at Riot Games, known for its globally popular games like League of Legends and Valorant. From player to professional, Hauck was driven by his curiosity about the human mind, leading him to explore the intersection of psychology and gaming, ultimately shaping the future of video game design.

Hauck’s story begins in New Jersey, where he attended community college before transferring to Rowan University in Glassboro to pursue a degree in psychology. Initially, Hauck planned to become a school counselor, but his path took a significant turn when he discovered human factors psychology—a field that applies psychological principles to the design of technology and user experiences. It was during his time at Rowan that Hauck’s childhood love for video games found an academic outlet. He joined a research lab which explored how video game players interact with visual stimuli.

This early exposure to research, combined with supportive mentorship from faculty members who encouraged his unique interests, was crucial for Hauck. "I met a faculty member in my cognitive psychology class who studied human factors psychology," Hauck recalled. "He was teaching cognitive psychology but worked in industry. So he told me about this whole field where people are studying psychology and applying it to technology and design. I kind of took that and ran with it."

Run with it, he did. After Rowan, Hauck pursued a master’s degree in psychology at the University of Idaho, where he joined a UX (user experience) psychology lab. His work there, which bridged the gap between academic research and practical application in the tech industry, was pivotal. This led him to Blizzard Entertainment, where he spent several years focusing on customer support software and website design—a role that deepened his understanding of how psychological principles could enhance user experiences in the digital world.

Despite his success at Blizzard, Hauck was drawn back to academia. Encouraged by colleagues who held Ph.Ds., and driven by a desire to teach, he decided to pursue a doctorate at OSU under the expertise of Professor Mei-Ching Lien, a leading scholar in human factors psychology. Hauck’s doctoral research delved into the study of attention, or specifically the lack thereof. Hauck’s findings suggested that a person’s strategy for focusing their attention—what psychologists call "top-down" processing—can significantly influence their susceptibility to distractions. This research is not only relevant to improving driving safety but also to the gaming industry, where understanding how players focus on or miss crucial in-game information can enhance game design.

"The research that we ended up doing was having participants engage in a visual search task, where participants responded to something on the display," Hauck explained. "It’s pretty basic cognitive psychology, but the hope is that what we learn about how people are distracted helps us navigate the world. Whether that’s through an app, through driving, or just walking down the street.”

Though looking forward to his role at Riot Games, beyond his work in the industry, Hauck harbors a deep interest in teaching. He sees a significant benefit in having educators with industry experience, as they can bring strength to connecting academic theory to real-world application. His advice to students hoping to combine their passions with their careers is clear: get involved in research early, seek out mentorship, and be proactive in building a portfolio. He emphasizes the importance of hands-on experience, whether through internships, research labs, or personal projects. "It’s about finding how people got to where you want to be, and then positioning yourself to get that experience."

Hauck’s journey epitomizes how passion, when combined with the right opportunities and mentorship, can lead to a fulfilling and impactful career. As he steps into his new role at Riot Games, there is no doubt Hauck will enhance the experiences of players around the world, continuing to utilize the intersection of psychology and gaming.

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Kyra Patterson

By Quinn Keller, CLA Student Writer - November 27, 2024

Third-year undergraduate student, Kyra Patterson is majoring in political science with a double minor in writing and criminology. For the past six months she has also been a part of an internship at the Benton County Sheriff's Office.

“Growing up, my mom and I always watched Law & Order together, particularly SVU, and I thought, ‘that's so cool. I want to do that,’” Patterson said. Initially wanting to enter law enforcement, Patterson’s interests moved to wanting to become a lawyer, appreciating the process of building and arguing a case.

Growing up in Scappoose, Patterson described her high school experience as best defined by significant political and socio economic current events such as the Covid pandemic and Black Lives Matter movement, as well as a larger awareness of mental health and gun safety issues. After a tumultuous four years, Patterson was looking to get involved, form a career around activism, and become an advocate for others during challenging times. The School of Public Policy’s political science law and politics option would allow Patterson to explore the judicial side of advocacy.

Patterson loved the courses focused on civics, as well as how the professors opened up the classes to structured debate and discussion on various topics. “The law and politics track was exactly what I was looking for in terms of setting up my future,” said Patterson. “It provided a foundation for my journey towards getting a law degree.”

After taking Sociology of Drug Use and Abuse (SOC 442) and Deviant Behavior and Social Control (SOC 340), Patterson added criminology as a minor. In the latter class, Patterson was particularly inspired by a guest speaker who was a formerly incarcerated man now advocating for prison reform. Patterson eventually added a minor in creative writing, motivated by her long-time passion for writing.

Today, Patterson works with recently incarcerated individuals moving into transitional public housing for her internship at the Benton County Sheriff’s Office in Corvallis. As a Case Monitor, Patterson oversees the health and wellbeing of clients living in housing provided by Benton County. The purpose of transitional housing is to help people released from prison get back on their feet; they pay rent through community service and ideally stay in public housing for around 90 days before finding a place of their own. Patterson supports the clients by creating weekly action plans, including connecting them with resources to obtain job interviews and helping to find more permanent housing.

“It's nice to be able to support their journey and provide them with resources when they're just out of prison, especially since some of them are getting a single room for themselves for the first time in years. The most rewarding feeling is seeing people successfully transition into and out of housing and making a life for themselves. I feel that I’m playing an important role in helping clients feel valued and ensuring that the crimes they committed aren’t defining who they are.”

“People who aren’t involved or aware of the criminal justice system tend to inherently perceive those who commit crimes negatively,” Patterson explained. “There's no humanity for these people who are just trying to get back on their feet and start again. We have an eye-for-an-eye justice system, not a reformative one.”

Working at the sheriff's office has added a layer of transparency about the legal system as she became acquainted with the aftermath of sentencing. “From my interactions with people in the sheriff’s office, county officials, and clients, the whole experience has humanized the criminal justice system for me,” she said. Being in this post-conviction position, Patterson explained that it’s “important to see what a convicted individual’s life is like after a court sentences someone to 15 years in prison,” because from a lawyer's position, they don’t often see the aftermath.

This fall, Patterson is wrapping up her internship with the Benton County Sheriff’s Office and is beginning to work on her honors thesis, focusing around ethics and AI. Expected to graduate in 2026, Patterson plans to go to law school, hoping to attend Lewis & Clark Law School. 

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Yung-Yi Diana Pan

By Gabriella Grinbergs, CLA Student Writer - February 15, 2024

Before becoming the current Interim Executive Director of the Asian American/Asian Research Institute (AAARI) and Associate Professor of Sociology at the City University of New York, Yung-Yi Diana Pan, ‘02, embarked on her professional academia journey in the McNary dormitory at Oregon State University.

Pan was born in Taiwan, and raised in Corvallis, Oregon, and became a first generation college student when she began studying business at OSU. Business originally appealed to her as a versatile degree, though Pan said she had no idea what was available to her early in her undergraduate career.

However, working at the Women’s Center (now the Hattie Redmond Women & Gender Center) influenced her decision to switch her major to political science and ethnic studies. “My intellectual curiosity was very much piqued ,” she said of the experience, as she was able to interact with students from all majors and walks of life.

“Because there’s such a strong STEM focus at OSU, oftentimes, humanities and social sciences  seemed like an overlooked gem in some ways. ” Pan said. Gaining the individualized attention from tenured professors and mentors, including ethnic studies Associate Professor Patti Sakurai, played a significant role in Pan’s academic and professional development, alongside smaller and seminar-style classes where students were encouraged to be critical and analytical towards the learning material.

Connections with teachers and colleagues led Pan to become a Ronald E. McNair Scholar – a program designed to prepare first generation undergraduate students for earning a Ph.D. She learned about the program from a graduate student at the Women’s Center and more about graduate school from her peers and mentors in CLA.

Following graduation, Pan went on to earn a master’s degree in ethnic studies from San Francisco State University and a doctorate degree in sociology from the University of California, Irvine. Her research broadly covers experiences of non-white people in predominantly white spaces due to her own experiences in similar spaces, including at OSU.

A part of her dissertation led to her writing her first book, Incidental Racialization, in which she examined the experiences of Asian American and Latinx law students in a predominantly white profession. Pan sought to better understand how race played a role in the law profession and how a person would be racialized and treated based on one’s particular racial identity.

“The way that I experienced the world was very much based on my life having grown up in Oregon,” Pan stated. “So I wanted to understand what socialization looked like, as well as what processes of racialization might look like. I primarily wanted to (focus on) the profession, or the training itself.”

A more recent research endeavor by Pan covers the idea of viewing culture outside of something strictly racial to include regional or institutional cultures. She dives into this concept by analyzing the process of drug addiction recovery and its intersections with class and race. “We all have our own little cultures, like CLA has its own little culture that’s different from the College of Engineering.”

Pan now works as an associate professor at the City University of New York, Brooklyn College. She hopes to help students tap into their “sociological imagination” by working to instill an understanding of one’s positionality in society and how that affects the way society functions. She most enjoys interfacing with students and faculty, and being able to provide opportunities to impact the broader community outside of the classroom.

“The other thing I really try to impress in my classes is that NYC is great and it is diverse in so many ways,” she added. “The rest of the country doesn’t look like this, so I really try to instill, not only images but lessons from other parts of the country, because as Americans we need to have an understanding of the country we live in, not just our tiny little bubbles.”

She is the interim executive director of  AAARI and had been serving on the board for ten years prior. A part of this position includes providing funding for research projects and community initiatives pitched by professors and students in the CUNY system. While currently leading the scholarly research and resource institute, Pan is focused on incorporating Asian American and Pacific Islander history and cultural studies in K-12 public school curriculum. This effort partly builds off of the concerns of communities of color who live in rural areas.

“There’s a sense of invisibility people of color feel in bucolic environments,” said Pan. “There is typically very little access to translation and city services for people of color, in addition to lack of inclusiveness in public school settings.”

Pan expressed a strong gratitude for the support she receives even now from former professors and mentors. When Incidental Racialization was released, Pan held a book talk at the Corvallis Public Library and was able to see the extent of her support in Corvallis.

“I had this room full of supportive people, and people I grew up with, and I had childhood friends’ parents there, too.” She added, “I think that type of support especially from OSU mentors and advisors – I think that’s unparalleled.”

“I had such a wonderful experience at OSU and I’m so happy for you and the current students who are there,” she expressed. “The relationships I developed at OSU have been very fruitful and steadfast and nurturing.”

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Sarah Cunningham | Credit: Blake Brown

By Emily Willis, CLA Student Writer - March 8, 2024

The College of Liberal Arts’ Food in Culture and Social Justice Program (FCSJ), housed within the School of Language, Culture, and Society, aims to give students a holistic foundation in the study of food and culture, as well as the tools to help construct socially just food systems. OSU, known for producing cutting edge food systems research and practice, provides students with access to a wide range of food and agriculture-related resources from across the university’s 11 colleges. FCSJ is currently offered as a graduate minor and undergraduate certificate.

Sarah Cunningham, senior instructor in anthropology and coordinator of FCSJ, is passionate about the intersection of food and social justice to ensure food security for all, fair treatment of those whose labor feeds us, and empower communities to be active participants in the creation and implementation of food policies that affect their wellbeing. Along with teaching, Sarah cofounded Fresh and Local First, a local nonprofit that helps community members access fresh, local, and affordable food. The organization supports the buying power of low-income patrons using SNAP at  farmers’ markets in Benton and Linn counties.

A core component of the program is examining the relationship between food and identity through the foods that families and communities grow, cook, and eat. Food, from its production to consumption, is a powerful symbol of social and cultural meaning. As an expression of identity and subjectivity, food also marks borders between humans and non-humans, plants and animals, nature and culture, and tradition and modernity.

Cunningham is an applied anthropologist who became interested in food justice through the lens of rural livelihoods, particularly family farms and the effects on communities when smaller farms decline. “It started with my maternal grandfather, who like so many other American farmers, lost his farm during the 1980s farm crisis."

Students within the program hail from various disciplines across campus and online. Coursework required in the FCSJ program spans disciplines such as agriculture, anthropology, ethnic studies, and history, followed by elective courses in natural resources and social sciences. This multidisciplinary approach provides students with expertise to better understand society and culture through food. The different perspectives brought to the program enhance the ways that students can incorporate the curriculum into their professional lives and communities.

A critical piece of coursework is the 1-credit FCSJ 406, Food Projects, which serves as an experiential and service learning course for students to further hone their skills and grow their networks volunteering on a food justice project. Past projects by students have included developing  a community garden, helping out at food pantries and meal sites, conducting ethical purchases review for UHDS, working at local organizations like Slow Food Corvallis and the Ten Rivers Food Web, as well as hosting events, like the Celebration of Global Culinary Heritage and the annual Empty Bowls Benefit.

“With a variety of hands-on projects,” Cunningham elaborated, “students get a chance to practice being the change that they wish to see in the world.”

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Patricia Fifita | Credit: Blake Brown

By Gabriella Grinbergs, CLA Student Writer - May 31, 2024

Patricia Fifita, assistant professor in ethnic studies, has been a part of the liberal arts faculty at OSU since 2018, and joined the ethnic studies faculty as a tenure-track professor in 2021 as a part of the Indigenous Studies cluster hire. Fifita uses her extensive experience in Indigenous and Pacific Islander studies, medical and environmental anthropology, and ethnobotany to build a safe space for Indigenous histories and stories to be shared.

Fifita began her academic career at Brigham Young University in Utah, where she earned a bachelor of arts in cultural anthropology with minors in botany and international development. An apprenticeship in Tonga, a Polynesian kingdom, proved to be “a life changing experience” as she studied under an ethnobotanist who examined Tongan women’s use of limu, or seaweed, in Vava‘u, Tonga.

This was Fifita’s first time visiting Tonga, specifically her father’s village, after being born and raised in diaspora. Her connection to her work on a personal and cultural level, one which she describes as “empowering and eye-opening,” pushed her to continue on this academic path in traditional ecological knowledge and medicinal plants.

She felt drawn towards working in a field related to health and healing on a personal level, but “didn’t know how that would play out with an academic pathway” before her undergraduate studies. She mentioned working with traditional healers in her youth and hearing stories about her lineage’s connection to healing.

“It was just the way things unfolded for me,” Fifita stated. “I  followed that path and I am very grateful for it.”

From there, she earned a master’s degree and Ph.D. in medical anthropology from the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa. Focusing specifically on medical anthropology in graduate school provided a bridge between her studies in ethnobotany, her interests in cultural usage of plants, and her Polynesian home.

“One thing I really find useful in my academic work, it fosters a certain level of interdisciplinarity,” said Fifita. “The methodologies (of anthropology are) really useful for the type of work I like to do, which is more community-based.”

Her doctoral research included a study in Tonga where she examined Tongan women’s experiences with cancer, after her mother was also diagnosed. Fifita focused on the experience of the disease as an embodiment of inequality , reflecting on wider social and political problems which contribute to systemic healthcare disparities in Tongan hospitals and local clinics.

Fifita’s experience with environmental anthropology was present throughout her graduate studies. This further manifested in her postdoctoral research as she continued her field work on climate change and food insecurity in Hawaii, Guam, Northern Marianas, and the Federated States of Micronesia before taking a position at OSU.

In nearly five years at OSU, Fifita has developed and taught the inaugural course in Pacific Islands Studies, co-developed the Indigenous studies minor in the College of Liberal Arts, and contributed to the development of the Marine Studies major. She continues to teach various courses in ethnic studies and anthropology,  grounding her courses in a  social justice and equity-centered framework.

Fifita’s current research focuses on coastal restoration in Anahola, Kauai. Supported by a grant from the Lenfest Ocean Program, Fifita plans to conduct an indigenous-led land restorative justice project, incorporating traditional knowledge of the Anahola community, to guide the (re)envisioning and restoration of ancestral relationships with the Anahola coastal zones.

“For me, as an Indigenous person, especially as someone working within my own communities, there is an applied component that I feel an obligation and responsibility to do with my work,” she explained.

Fifita moved back to Oregon after her postdoctoral research study, feeling she needed to be with her parents in Corvallis, when the opportunity to work at OSU arose. She expressed her delight at all the work that has been done to build the Indigenous Studies minor, saying she “never dreamed” there would be this space at OSU to focus on developing a critical Pacific Islander studies program. This excitement comes especially with experiencing the marginalization and omission of Indigenous histories in the K through 12 U.S. education system.

“It’s often a really emotional thing for Pacific Islander students who are often feeling very alone or homesick, to be an anchor to support them and also honor who they are in an institution that doesn’t necessarily provide a lot of space for those identities –  I think for me, that’s what gets me out of bed to teach every time I have the opportunity,” Fifita stated.

Another significant area of the safe space Fifita has helped build at OSU is the Reciprocity Garden, a student-run collaborative and coordinated by Charlotte Epps, dedicated to sowing and harvesting culturally significant plants as a way to provide BIPOC students and faculty a way to connect with their cultural identity.

She incorporates the garden into classes she teaches, including Food and Ethnic Identity: Decolonizing Our Food and Body (ES/FCSJ 464/564) by allowing students the opportunity to interact with the garden, “to reinforce a sense of home or connection wherever (Indigenous students) have been dispersed to,” Fifita said. For her, one of these is Taro – a root vegetable significant to Tongan and other Pacific Islander communities. Fifita is also growing harakeke, or New Zealand flax, for future weaving projects.

Fifita, throughout her academic and professional careers, particularly in her work at OSU, found motivation in wanting to remain a constant support to her parents.

Coming back to Oregon after working and living in the Pacific for nearly twenty years felt like a “full circle moment”, she described, and owes many of the opportunities to complete her work to her father, Ika Fifita. He retired from OSU after over 30 years of service, working with BIPOC students through culturally based organizations, athletics, and multiple social justice causes. Since retirement, he now volunteers as a Football Ambassador and continues to support students by regularly attending OSU sporting events, Fifita shared.

“His goal was to create a sense of home and belonging, especially for Pacific Islander students, faculty, and staff who felt far away from their island communities,” she added. “I am really happy that I have the opportunity to honor his legacy.”

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Jessica Hume-Pantuso

By Jessica Florescu, CLA Student Writer - March 1, 2024

As a photojournalist for the Corvallis Gazette Times and Albany Democrat-Herald, Jessica Hume-Pantuso, ‘22, finds fulfillment and joy in the work that she does.

“My goal is to use photography to help and support others,” said Hume-Pantuso.  “The most rewarding part are the messages I get from people that tell me they saw my photos in the paper.”  Hume-Pantuso graduated  with a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Photography from the School of Visual, Performing, and Design Arts (SVPDA), but she started developing her love for photography at a young age. She was always very observant, so being behind a camera allowed her to explore the world around her.

However, what she actually enjoys most about photography is the meaningful connections that she is able to make with others through her storytelling abilities.

“I find that through my photography,” Hume-Pantuso explained. “I’m able to connect with people on a basic level, which I feel is uncommon for most careers.”

Hume-Pantuso’s academic career in photography started in North Texas, when she graduated from Tarrant County College in 2013. Hume-Pantuso then worked in a variety of photography-related capacities, including as a product photographer and photo technician. After moving to Corvallis in 2020 and enrolling in the BFA program, she found a welcoming art and photography community within SVPDA.

“Rather than just helping you complete a degree,” said Hume-Pantuso. “CLA professors truly value teaching students the best ways to express themselves. They care about helping you become an artist and anyone who puts in the time will be welcomed with open arms.”

She was personally able to find support within her CLA community while she was going through a family hardship. After Hume-Pantuso’s mom passed away in April 2021, she used school and photography as her fuel to keep going. “It was an amazing experience to have this whole community that supported me and allowed me to grieve, but also learn and not feel like it was wasted time.” Finding a supportive and kind community can be something that is very difficult, so it was such a relief for Hume-Pantuso to be able to find comfort in the midst of her grief.

Hume-Pantuso has taken photos and conducted interviews for many significant causes, but she feels her most inspiring work is spotlighting unhoused individuals. She has gained new perspectives on this growing crisis, by holding meaningful conversations with residents of Oregon communities who are unhoused. Her deep empathy and compassion for individuals who are unhoused shines through in her photography.

“Through my photography and storytelling,” explained Hume-Pantuso. “I believe I have the ability to help educate others about situational awareness and create empathy for others with different experiences. I try to see a person as a person before anything else and put them at ease when I’m taking their photo. That’s something I came away with from my time as part of the photography program.”

Students within the SVPDA BFA photography and digital studio programs are exposed to a variety of classes to challenge themselves and build their skills throughout their four years at OSU. A sample of classes included in the curriculum are darkroom photography, digital imaging, and history of photography. Associate Professor of Art Julia Bradshaw co-leads the program and teaches all levels of photography, as well as  the history of photography and video art classes.  Bradshaw was also one of Hume-Pantuso’s instructors and mentors.

“My first impression of Jess,” said Bradshaw, “ demonstrated that she was most resilient; challenging herself to work on a photography series outside her comfort zone. Once on-campus, she truly embraced her time at OSU working prolifically and striving to make something new and meaningful with her artwork. Her work was occasionally poignant, inspiring empathy or personal recognition by the viewer, but at the same time her work was steeped in the appropriate theory or her knowledge of photographic history. Since graduation, Jess continues to make art and build an arts community in and around Corvallis, which is particularly gratifying and inspirational to see.

Within SVPDA, there are many programs and opportunities for students to advance their scholarship and explore interest areas. When asked about life lessons she had learned during her time at OSU, Hume-Pantuso commented, “I would honestly say to current students to  take advantage of resources and people you have around you and learn the most you can about everything you can. It’s hard to have the time to make use of everything but do your best.”

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Chloe Ross | Credit: Natalia Bueno

By Ellie Webb-Bowen, CLA Student Writer - May 12, 2024

Chloe Ross, a senior majoring in public policy and minoring in economics and political science, always knew she wanted to attend OSU, but it was growing up in rural Central California that inspired her decision to pursue public policy.

Porterville is a small town nestled in a remote agricultural community in the San Joaquin Valley, surrounded by orange and walnut trees, as well as a large migrant population that works long hours to harvest them. Growing up in a community whose economy is dominated by the ebbs and flows of agricultural production was one of the factors that contributed to Ross’ interest in public policy.

“Porterville is not a wealthy town,” explained Ross. “Resident livelihoods are bound to the annual harvest and, recently, I’ve begun to see how the effects of climate change on crop production are significantly affecting the surrounding community. I witnessed first hand a lot of the brutal effects of climate change on a very vulnerable population.”

Particularly from the decades-long drought afflicting Central California, Ross described how many families lacked access to running water and how her high school had to open its doors to the public to shield themselves from the brutal heat and provide potable water.

Looking to make a difference, Ross identified OSU’s public policy program as an avenue to gain the skills and knowledge needed to become an advocate for small town agricultural communities like Porterville. It was during her freshman year that Ross realized graduate school was an option, when a guest speaker in one of her public policy classes touted how much farther a master’s degree can take you in making an impact. After spring term, Ross will be enrolling in a political communication master’s program at American University in Washington D.C.

“I’m hoping that the political communication program will give me the tools to cut through the political polarization and help me create permanent, lasting change in small communities,” said Ross. “It’s more important than ever to be able to eloquently articulate your point-of-view and advocate for effective policies.”

Ross’ advocacy and interest in public policy was also instilled in her at a young age by her great-grandparents, both of whom had storied military careers and lived to nearly 100 years old. Her great-grandfather survived the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 and fought in the Pacific during WWII, and her great-grandmother was in military intelligence, though she only revealed her illustrious profession to Ross’ great-grandfather before passing in 2017.

“My great-grandparents were very adamant about helping others and giving back to the community,” said Ross. “I was lucky to be able to have so many years and memories with them.”

Ross has volunteered countless hours in Porterville's veteran community, including starting a student club at her high school called HeartWarmers, which teaches students how to create knot blankets for those who are in need, including for women's shelters. In 2023, she was able to accompany veterans from all over California’s Central Valley on an Honor Flight to D.C., which gives veterans the opportunity to see the memorials of the respective war they fought in. Blankets provided to the 80 veterans flying across the country were knitted by HeartWarmers in 2020; though Ross had graduated from high school already, she was invited to join the flight as a way to honor her great-grandfather who had recently passed away. Ross wrote up her moving experience in a story for The Porterville Recorder about a  female veteran on the flight.

At American University, Ross intends to pursue her passion with the goal of helping communities like  Porterville.  "I love Corvallis and my time at OSU,” Ross described. “But I feel at home in the Central Valley. I’m looking forward to starting a new chapter in my life.”

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Katie Bollman

By Emily Willis, CLA Student Writer - May 31, 2024

Katie Bollman, an assistant professor in economics at the School of Public Policy, focuses on the economics of courts and crime, but has also branched out into researching children’s schooling and intimate partner violence. Bollman, who graduated from Truman State University with her B.S. in economics and math and then Michigan State University with her M.A. and Ph.D., described going into economics because it seemed like a great way to improve her skill set with the possibility of being able to create a positive impact in people’s livelihoods.

“Through my partnerships with non-government organizations,” said Bollman, “I’m hoping for my research to inform more effective public policy. I see it as my mission to provide quality information to policymakers to help them make informed decisions. Hopefully, by doing that, I can make the world a better place.”

Bollman’s job market research paper focused on the effects of court outcomes when police wear body cameras. Body-worn cameras monitor police interactions and generate video data of criminal defendants, whereby this data can provide evidence pertinent to court cases. By examining criminal charges in Virginia state courts from 2006 – 2020, Bollman found evidence that body-worn cameras lead to an approximately 10 percent reduction in new case filings for offenses initiated during a police interaction, like resisting arrest.

“Though there was a reduction in case filings,” Bollman explained, “there wasn’t evidence to suggest that body-worn cameras changed court processes or resolutions, nor that cameras increase or decrease racial disparities in case filings.”

Bollman’s 2023 paper, published in AEA Papers and Proceedings with Leah Lakdawala of Wake Forest University, examined the effects of parental disability on children’s schooling investments. Focusing on children of veterans who became disabled during military service, Bollman and Lakdawala found that children’s private school attendance depended on the severity of their parents’ disability and educational background. The difference can be explained in foregone earnings across more or less educated parents.

“There were large differences in educational investment after a parental disability,” said Bollman. “Though parental disability generates larger reductions in parental labor supply for less educated parents, the reduction in earnings is great for more educated parents.”

Bollman’s upcoming research projects include looking at housing policy with an ongoing randomized controlled trial occuring in Seattle, as well as a working paper on the effects of Oregon Measure 114, which placed stricter gun control limits on purchasers, including requiring photo ID, fingerprints, safety training, a criminal background check, and more.

Bollman arrived at OSU in 2022, but is seeing more interest in economics across campus. Bollman herself is leading and organizing the School of Public Policy Seminar Series, as well as the Women in Economics group on campus, a mentoring and support student group for women majoring in the notoriously underrepresented profession.

“One thing that I enjoy doing regularly is having students read some current economic research on topics that interest them, like inequality, or housing. It allows students to see how economists pursue data-driven answers to critical questions on these topics.”

Effective public policymaking is supported by evidence-based research to improve livelihoods. Letting students engage in topics they may find appealing helps them familiarize themselves better with different situations.

Bollman continued, “My role in policymaking as an economist is asking challenging questions and coming to answers through rigorous research. For students interested in public policy, there are lots of roles that can be filled within the field and many faculty within the School of Public Policy to provide unique perspectives on how they support effective policymaking. As a student, you’ll want to develop a lot of useful tools for your belt before going into the public sector.”