People: Our Research Assistants

Research Assistants, 2005-2006

 Ligaya Beebe is a first-year student in the Master of Arts Program in the Social Sciences at the University of Chicago. Beebe holds a master of science in education from St. John's University in Queens, N.Y., and a bachelor of arts degree in religion from Reed College in Portland, Ore. Before joining the Center in fall 2005, Beebe spent two years participating in the New York City Teaching Fellows Program and taught special needs students at a primary school in Brownsville, Brooklyn. Her scholarly interest is the interaction between religious ideology and foreign policymaking.

Brian Bettenhausen is a fourth-year sociology student in the College at the University of Chicago. His major area of interest is in examining the effects of globalization and cosmopolitanism on nationally embedded cultural texts.

AllisonBurlock is a second-year public policy student in the College at the University of Chicago. Before coming to the Cultural Policy Center, she worked with a school district in Vermont to help increase students resiliency and reduce risk-taking behaviors. She is interested in education policy.

Stephanie Hughes holds a master’s degree in public policy from the Harris School of Public Policy Studies, and specializes in GIS and regional policy. She holds a bachelor of arts degree in sociology and women's studies from University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Ofurhe Igbinedion is a first-year student in the College at the University of Chicago.

Alaina Jasinevicius is pursuing a joint A.M. degree in public policy and Latin American studies at the Harris School of Public Policy Studies. She recently completed her master’s research and is preparing her thesis on a network of community museum projects in Oaxaca, Mexico. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Rochester in 2002, with a double major in political science and art history. Her interest in cultural policy stems from her experiences working with non-profit arts and community development organizations, her interest in museums in the United States and Mexico, and a lifetime of participation in music, art, photography and dance.

Jeffrey Kirkwood is a graduate student in social science at the University of Chicago, studying 20th century intellectual fascination with death in Germany. He holds a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy from the University of Colorado. He has since edited academic articles for journals in anthropology, psychology, social thought, and philosophy. His research background is grounded in philosophy and history, and he has also worked in medical research. His peripheral academic interests are early 20th century photo-portraiture, Ernest Becker, and irresolvable paradoxes.

Yu (Helen) Li is a first-year student in the Master of Public Policy Program at the Harris School of Public Policy Studies. She holds an MBA from Melbourne Business School at the University of Melbourne, and specializes in public finance and health policy.

Nathan Paufve is a first-year student in the Master in Public Policy program at the Harris School of Public Policy Studies. Paufve holds a bachelor of arts degree in urban studies and policy; his scholarly interest is in examining issues of poverty and inequality.

Daniel Silver is a doctoral candidate in the Committee on Social Thought at the University of Chicago. He received a bachelor of arts degree in rhetoric and philosophy from the University of California, Berkeley, and has been a Mellon Fellow for Humanistic Studies. His dissertation is a study of the problem of boredom in modern societies. At the Cultural Policy Center, he is developing theoretical and empirical methods for understanding the nature and power of scenes in contemporary American life.

Jamie Smith is a third-year student public policy student in the college at the University of Chicago. Her primary focus is on cultural policy, economics, and international policy. Smith was part of the University of Chicago Cultural Indicators Project in 2005 for the City of Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs. Currently she is researching the relationship between departmental and federal government in France and how it affects policy implementation.

Emily Walsh is a first-year student in the Master of Arts Program in the Social Sciences at the University of Chicago, and holds a bachelor of science degree in sociology from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Walsh's scholarly interest is in dynamic relationships between cultural centers, such as museums, and the communities within which they reside. Her research intends to particularly explore on how small community-based art centers negotiate their identities within large, diverse urban communities. Walsh also is interested in examining the unique relationship that public art, such as murals, maintains with its communities.

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