Poverty, Public Policy and Controversy

Calendar

LEC #	TOPICS	KEY DATES
1	Orientation Session; Syllabus, and Summary Sheet	Analytical Exercise (On Ellwood Reading)
2	Policy Controversy and the Role of Values in Problem Definition
3	The Concept and Measurement of Poverty in the United States
4	Other Approaches to Conceptualizing and Measuring Poverty
5	Roundtable Discussion on the Concept and Measurement of Poverty (student led)
6	Institutional Design of Poverty Programs: Controversy over Responsibility, the Public-Private Mix Continued
7	The Public Private Mix Controversy in Pension Policy	Assignment #1 Due
8	The Public Private Mix Controversy in Social Service Policy: Profit and Non Profit (Non-Sectarian and Faith-Based)
9	Roundtable Discussion on the Public-Private Mix
		Mid Term Exam (One week after Lecture 9)
10	The Underclass Controversy
11	Taking Stock and Starting Discussion of the Underclass Debate
12	Analyzing and Writing Reading Arguments
13	Moving to Opportunity
14	The Controversy over Welfare Reform
15	Dependency in a Comparative Perspective	Assignment #2 Due
16	The American Reform of its Welfare System
17	Roundtable Discussion of Welfare Reform
18	Political Disenfranchisement	Writing Rewrite Assignment Due
19	Economic Growth: Poverty and the I.Q. Controversy
20	The Controversy of Political Disenfranchisement: Poverty as a Lack of Power Crime Deviance and Poverty Roundtable Discussion on the Underclass Debate
21	Economic Power
22	Roundtable Discussion on Disenfranchisement	Assignment #3 Due
23	Social Science Contribution to Controversy
		End Term Exam (Optional but Strongly Recommended - 2 days after the last Lecture)