IRP co-hosts, with Howard University, a biannual week-long Graduate Student Research Workshop on Poverty and Economic Mobility for pre-dissertation proposal PhD students in the social sciences from low-income or rural backgrounds.
The workshop offers intensive training and mentorship to help attendees expand their skills, knowledge, and resources needed to prepare an effective dissertation proposal centered on policy-relevant, actionable research that will inform human services and economic mobility policies. The workshop is designed to meet the following goals for dissertators: (1) increase their knowledge about poverty research and the context of human services and economic mobility policies; (2) strengthen their interdisciplinary research skills; (3) increase the policy relevance of their research, and (4) improve communication and translation skills for policy audiences.
Workshop participants will receive guidance on writing a dissertation proposal that will be eligible for consideration to receive one of four $5,000 student research awards to support dissertation work. Funding may be used to cover research support costs related to data collection, such as transcription or for conference registration or travel.
The workshop is held at Howard University in Washington, DC. Attendees are competitively selected in a biannual call for applications. IRP and Howard plan to host the workshop in late spring 2023 and 2025. Calls for these workshops will be released the prior fall.
2025 Graduate Student Research Workshop Dissertation Awardees
Victoria Ciudad-Real
Address:
Department of Sociology
University of California, Irvine
Danna Gutiérrez Lanza
Address:
School of Planning Design and Construction
Michigan State University
Michele Kamau
Address:
Human Development and Family Studies
University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Melissa Newsome
Address:
Community Health Sciences, College of Public Health
University of South Florida
Vandeka Rodgers Eze
Address:
Department of Education and Social Policy
University of Delaware
Trey Santorine
Address:
Department of Sociology & Criminology
University of Miami
2023 Graduate Student Research Workshop Dissertation Awardees
Naomi Duran
Address:
Human Development and Family Studies
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Ashley Orr
Address:
Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy
Carnegie Mellon University
