Solutions for the Region,
Solutions for the World

About

About

Breadcrumb

Solutions for the Region, Solutions for the World

In 2012, the UCR School of Public Policy was announced as the newest academic unit on campus, carrying the distinction of being one of only four public policy schools in the entire 10-campus UC system. In 2015, it was fully established as a School with a dean, faculty, staff, and students when it launched its Master of Public Policy (MPP) program, the only such program offered by a major research university in inland Southern California. Additionally, it is the only public policy school with an undergraduate public policy major in the entire UC system.

At the UCR School of Public Policy, our motto is "Solutions for the Region, Solutions for the World." While our research has global implications and relevance, Southern California—particularly, the inland region in Southern California— offers us a "living laboratory" in our own backyard to explore, investigate, and learn. As such, the theories that we test, issues that we analyze, and the solutions that we identify that concern Southern California and the Inland Empire's most pressing policy challenges have relevance to the state, nation, and world. By engaging in research that identifies the drivers of policy successes, as well as policy failures, we offer decision-makers, students, and society a more complete understanding of what works, what doesn't, and why.

Our Mission: Serving Inland Southern California

Our mission is to train a new generation of forward-thinking public policy leaders equipped to address the complex, interrelated challenges of poverty, disease, illiteracy, climate change, energy security, pollution and more. Their training will be informed by (i) a diverse, interdisciplinary curriculum that emphasizes evidence-based policy research as well as cross-learning from both international and domestic problem-solving experiences, and (ii) a rich internship program that emphasizes experiential learning.

About the Dean

Meet the Dean

Mark C. Long began his role as Dean of the School of Public Policy at UC-Riverside in January 2023, following the successful tenure of Anil Deolalikar, who served as founding Dean of SPP.

Long’s research examines the effects of public policies on economic opportunity and efficient social mobility, with emphasis on estimating the benefits and costs of those policies. His education-related research focuses on: (1) the effects of high school course-taking and school and college quality on test scores, educational attainment, labor market outcomes, and family formation and other behaviors; (2) the effects of college financial aid on college entry and household savings; (3) gender disparities in educational attainment; and (4) the effects of affirmative action and alternative college admissions policies on college entry.

#85
among Best Public Affairs Programs (U.S. News & World Report)
#44
Top 25% Public Policy Schools (IDEAS/REPEC - January 2023)
#8
in the nation's 2022 Most Popular Bachelor's Degree Colleges for Public Policy (College Factual)
#3
2023 Best Public Policy Bachelor's Degree Schools in the Far Western US Region (College Factual)

Timeline

Timeline

 

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