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The Abstract
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> Edited by Torie Ludwin, Arnold Ventures (AV)
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How do you navigate an increasingly partisan world if you do not fit neatly into Team Blue vs. Team Red? Since 2018, comedian turned political commentator Andrew Heaton has tried to answer that question on his podcast, The Political Orphanage, where he regularly interviews authors and thought leaders about policy and the big issues facing our nation.
This week, Heaton sat down with Laura and John Arnold, founders and co-chairs of Arnold Ventures, to discuss their evidence-based approach to philanthropy and how they build bipartisan coalitions that can translate research into policy. Their work aims to improve the lives of Americans.
When asked about the ways the Arnolds select and prioritize their issue areas, Laura responded, “Our process really begins with idea generation and exploration of issue areas. We first ask: Is this an issue of high relevance to society where we can identify either a market imbalance or some sort of dysfunction that is yielding a suboptimal outcome? We then think about if this is an area where philanthropy has a space. See where the Arnolds go from there.
Learn more and listen to the podcast>
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AV's First Public Safety Bootcamp
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Last week, dozens of Republican and Democratic state lawmakers, researchers, and criminal justice system stakeholders attended Arnold Ventures’ first-ever “Public Safety Bootcamp” in Austin, Texas. Attendees discussed what is working and what can be improved in various aspects of the criminal justice system, from policing, to pretrial, to sentencing and release, with a focus on reducing crime and improving public safety. A primary focus of this highly successful convening was to encourage generative conversations and build new relationships.
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Laura Arnold Receives
Martin Luther King, Jr. Award
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Public Finance
- The second in a series of 4, The Cato Institute's primer on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) covers the bases.
Health Care
- A national poll from AV found that high hospital prices are a top concern for voters, and large majorities on both sides of the aisle support policies to bring down costs.
Higher Education
- A report from the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity (FREOPP) on outcomes-based funding policies highlighted Texas State Technical College (TSTC) as a promising example for other states. The vocational school bases its state appropriations entirely on its graduates’ earnings.
Criminal Justice
- Many US cities are experiencing large declines in violent crime, the AP reports. In the story, Jeff Asher, who operates the Real-Time Crime Index, explains that while the data clearly shows violent crime is down, low-level crimes and general disorder in communities can influence people’s perception and understanding of crime rates.
- Last year, voters in Colorado approved a ballot measure to provide $350 million in additional funding for law enforcement. Colorado Public Radio looks at how policymakers and stakeholders in the state are deciding how and when to spend it.
- The Missouri Independent spoke with several lawmakers on both sides of the aisle about how they are considering establishing a new prison oversight panel to address record-high deaths, a drug epidemic, and deteriorating conditions in the state’s prisons.
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- With the launch of two new Requests for Proposals (RFPs), the AV Evidence and Evaluation team invites all interested parties to attend one of two webinars, scheduled Tuesday, February 11, at 12:00 p.m. ET and Thursday, February 27, at 1:00 p.m. ET. Email the team with questions or to learn more.
- Results for America (RFA) and the Fines and Fees Justice Center (FFJC) will be hosting a 7-part online Solutions Sprint exploring why and how to implement effective and efficient ability-to-pay (ATP) assessments in courts. This hands-on workshop is designed for court stakeholders and advocates interested in implementing ability-to-pay assessments, payment plans, and/or community service or alternatives to fines and/or fees. Applications are due no later than Monday, February 24, 2025.
- On Wednesday, March 12, from 11:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Mayflower Hotel Washington, D.C., as part of the Association for Education and Finance Policy (AEFP) conference, the AV Evidence and Evaluation team will host an inaugural Innovation Day, bringing together researchers and policymakers to explore areas of common interest and potential new avenues of research. Space is limited; please complete the online application by January 31 to attend. We strongly encourage policymakers, practitioners, and policy-adjacent individuals to apply.
- On April 18-19, 2025, the University of Texas Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs will host the Texas Economics of Crime Workshop. This workshop brings scholars together to discuss cutting-edge research from the economics of crime field. It will include presentations of working papers related to criminal behavior and the criminal justice system.
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Snow people of the southern variety sprung up in the Gulf states this week, with photos coming in from New Orleans, LA, North Escambia, FL, Dothan, AL, and even in Houston, TX, each showing a bit of regional flair (witness the jalapeno nose).
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The Criminal Justice team has released an RFP titled “ Causal Research on Community Safety and the Criminal Justice System.” The RFP seeks research proposals across all issues related to the criminal justice system and will remain open.
The Evidence and Evaluation team has released two RFPs, " Building Evidence" and " Strengthening Evidence," whose goals are to help build the body of proven policies, programs, and interventions. To learn more, attend one of two upcoming webinars on Tuesday, February 11, at 12:00 p.m. ET and Thursday, February 27, at 1:00 p.m. ET. Letters of interest are due Friday, March 14, 2025.
View our RFPs>
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