Student Support

Impacting Public Policy

Using findings to draw attention to those who are most vulnerable

Screenshot of a WRAL webpage that features a presentation about the impact of COVID-19 on North Carolina, as presented by UNC Public Policy graduates and students

Using findings to draw attention to those who are most vulnerable

The recent findings of Carolina students may serve to inform policymakers’ decisions as North Carolina continues to deal with COVID-19.

This past summer, UNC public policy fellows spent their time analyzing the impact of the pandemic to the Carolina community, specifically regarding health, economics, poverty and education. The research of these summer fellows served as an extension and application of their studies at Carolina.

“These recent graduates and current students went above and beyond. They went out and used their analytical skills and generated data that tells a very powerful North Carolina story,” said Daniel Gitterman, Duncan MacRae ’09 and Rebecca Kyle MacRae Professor and chair of the department of public policy. “We hope that by making this data publicly available that it will help target communities in need.”

These summer fellowships would not be possible without private funding. During these uncertain times, experiences like these are extremely influential in helping students achieve both their academic and professional goals.

“This project certainly helped bridge both the financial gap and professional development gap by creating an environment where I could improve my research, data analysis, communication and management skills,” said fellow Aditi Adhikari ’20. “In the end, we hope the findings can be used to draw attention to those that are most vulnerable.”

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