Visiting Scholar Speaker Series

Lectures & Talks

Visiting Scholar Speaker Series


Contact:
Office of International Students and Scholars
Open to:
Alumni, Current Students, Faculty & Staff, General Public, TC Community

Join us for the first Visiting Scholar Speaker Series of the academic year! 

Vanishing Voices: An Assessment of Diverse Participation in NYC Government and Why it Matters for Communities

Dr. Catherine DeLazzero will be joined by Dr. Jonathan Auerbach to report preliminary findings from a two year investigation of diversity on NYC community boards, which the Manhattan Borough President has described as “the independent and representative voices of their communities—the most grassroots form of local government" (2021). They will describe what enables board members to have influence on their communities through a pipeline of participation (from appointments to leadership to voice to outcomes); why some voices magnify and others disappear; barriers to inclusion, equity, and fairness; consequences for communities; and recommendations for improvement. Dr. DeLazzero and Dr. Auerbach examine “diversity” as intersections of life experience (i.e. demographics), subject matter expertise, and viewpoints. Dr. DeLazzero and Dr. Auerbach will also present new methods for assessing and visualizing diverse participation in organizations (i.e. diversity analytics). For additional work in this area, see their recent article, Linked Data Detail a Gender Gap in STEM That Persists Across Time and Place

Jonathan Auerbach, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Statistics at George Mason University. His research covers topics at the intersection of statistics and public policy. He has measured selection bias in mortality studies, traffic safety studies, and assessed the quality of the 2020 census. His work also investigates urban myths such as there are not eight million rats in New York City, there are traffic ticket quotas, and the average building is not getting taller. He has broad methodological interests in the analysis of longitudinal data, particularly for data science and causal inference. His policy interests include urban analytics, open data, and the collection, evaluation, and communication of official statistics. Auerbach served as a science policy fellow at the American Statistical Association, a researcher at CUNY’s Center for Urban Research, and an analyst for the New York City Council. Auerbach received his B.A. in economics from Cornell University and his Ph.D. in statistics from Columbia University.

Catherine DeLazzero, Ph.D. is a Visiting Research Scholar and member of the Institutional Review Board at Teachers College, Columbia University; and serves as a writing mentor for the Prison Writing Program at PEN America, which advocates for open expression and the freedom to write worldwide. Catherine has taught writing and communication in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens, across the United States and in South Africa; and served as a Fulbright Specialist in Thailand and Romania. Catherine’s research focuses on writing and communication to support learning in communities, as well as to address trauma and violence and advocate for human rights, especially in schools, prisons, and hospitals. Her interests include developing creative, future-oriented tools for research and analysis that reflect ethical principles of respect, beneficence, and justice. For the last eight years, she has also served in leadership roles on her local community board.* Catherine earned a B.A. in English from Oberlin College and an M.A., M.Phil., and Ph.D. in English education from Teachers College, Columbia University, where she completed her dissertation, Writing for Diversity, on student writing in NYC public high schools and CUNY colleges. 

*Catherine DeLazzero is conducting this research as an individual and not as a community board member, and her communications should not be construed as representing her community board or the City. 

This is a hybrid event. 

If you would like to join the event in person, please register through Eventbrite here.

If you would like to join us virtually, you can do so through Zoom here

Due to limited space, registration is required. 

Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to contact OASID at oasid@tc.edu , (212) 678-3689, (212) 678-3854 video phone, as early as possible to request reasonable accommodations, such as ASL interpreters, alternate format materials, and a campus map of accessible features.

 


To request disability-related accommodations, contact OASID at oasid@tc.edu, (212) 678-3689, as early as possible.

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