UC San Diego Social Scientists Tackle ‘California in Crisis’

April 29, 2010

By Inga Kiderra

University of California, San Diego social scientists will consider “California in Crisis: What Went Wrong? How Can It Be Fixed?” on May 25, 6 p.m., at the San Diego Natural History Museum in Balboa Park.

The professors will discuss the California budget crisis, its effect on the state, and possible solutions for recovery. The panel includes Marisa Abrajano, political science, Thad Kousser, political science, Isaac Martin, sociology, and Hugh “Bud” Mehan, sociology and director of the Center for Research on Educational Equity, Assessment and Teaching Excellence. Jeff Elman, dean of Social Sciences at UC San Diego, will moderate.

Abrajano will focus on the complexities of California’s demographics and possible solutions to the state’s budget crisis; Kousser, on the dynamics and dysfunctions of California’s state government; Martin, on Proposition 13, the tax revolt and its effects on California’s tax revenue; and Mehan, on the effects of the budget crisis on publicly funded K-12 education and the California Master Plan for Higher Education.

Admission is free. RSVP to http://alumni.ucsd.edu/cacrisis or 858-534-3900.

“California in Crisis” is hosted by the UCSD Alumni Association, the Division of Social Science and the Helen Edison Lecture Series.

Speaker Bios

Marisa Abrajano is an assistant professor of political science at UC San Diego. She received her Ph.D. in politics from New York University in 2005. Her research interests are in American politics, particularly in the areas of campaigns, mass electoral behavior, Latino politics and racial/ethnic politics. She is the author of two forthcoming books: “Campaigning to the New American Electorate: Television Advertising to Latinos” and “New Faces, New Voices: The Hispanic Electorate in America”(with R. Michael Alvarez). Her other work has been published in The Journal of Politics, Political Research Quarterly, American Politics Research and Political Behavior.

Thad Kousser is an associate professor of political science at UC San Diego who is spending this academic year studying California’s constitutional dilemmas as a National Fellow at the Hoover Institution. He has authored, co-authored or edited the books “Term Limits and the Dismantling of State Legislative Professionalism,” “Adapting to Term Limits: Recent Experiences and New Directions,” “The New Political Geography of California,” and “The Logic of American Politics.” His work has also been published in such journals as the American Political Science Review, the Journal of Politics, Political Analysis, Legislative Studies Quarterly, State Politics and Policy Quarterlyand the Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization. He is a recipient of the UCSD Academic Senate's Distinguished Teaching Award, the Faculty Mentor of the Year Award, serves as co-editor of the journal State Politics and Policy Quarterly, and has worked as a staff assistant in the California, New Mexico and United States senates.

Isaac Martin, associate professor of sociology at UC San Diego, received his B.A. from Carleton College in 1995 and his Ph.D. from U.C. Berkeley in 2003. He is the author of “The Permanent Tax Revolt: How the Property Tax Transformed American Politics,” an award-winning book on the origins of the fiscal crisis. He is also the co-editor of two recent books on fiscal policy, “After the Tax Revolt: Proposition 13 Turns 30” and “The New Fiscal Sociology: Comparative and Historical Perspectives on Taxation.” He has published articles on taxation and society in the American Journal of Sociology and the Law and Society Review.

Hugh “Bud” Mehan is professor of sociology and director of The Center for Research on Educational Equity, Access and Teaching Excellence (CREATE) at UC San Diego, appointments that link his commitments to research and practice. CREATE coordinates efforts at UC San Diego to improve the academic preparation of under-represented students in the community through partnerships with K-12 schools and districts and the Preuss School, the university's on-campus model charter school. He has authored six books, including “Reform as Learning.” Elected to the National Academy of Education, he is the recipient of four teaching awards and a public service award at UCSD. Other honors include the George and Louise Spindler Award for outstanding contributions to anthropology and education by the American Anthropological Association in November 2006, the Elizabeth Cohen Award for outstanding contributions to applied sociology by the Sociology of Education group of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) in April 2007, and a Lifetime Achievement Award by AERA in March 2008.

Media Contact: Inga Kiderra, 858-822-0661 or ikiderra@ucsd.edu