Group Assignment
Overview
For the group assignment, you will conduct a semester-long research project with your groups. Your group will choose one of the clients below (see Section 6) to advise on the client’s issue outlined in the prompt. For your client’s policy issue, you will: i) describe the background on the policy issue, including any research evidence on the factors that impact said issue; ii) provide your own data analysis that helps describe either the problem itself or a simulation/analysis comparing the alternative policy proposals you are considering (draw on what you learned in 501, 503, 504, and 505 here); iii) describe the details, strengths, and weaknesses of the status quo situation, your client’s current policy proposal, and an original alternative proposal you develop or adopt for consideration from existing ideas (i.e., from think tanks, scholars, GAO recommendations, other states/localities, other elected officials, etc.); iv) analyze the three proposals (including the status quo) regarding their likely impacts on the problem they are trying to solve, their costs, and the political implications of each (i.e., the key stakeholders in support or opposition of each and the likely political impacts of each stakeholder’s view; here, you’ll want to draw on what you learned in 500 and parts of 506).
For this assignment, you will prepare a report of no more than 20 pages (page limit does not include tables, figures, or references page). The report and a video presentation summarizing the report will be due by May 8th, 2025.
Remember, after doing your research and analysis, it is entirely possible to recommend the status quo, the client’s original proposal (as is or modified), or the additional alternative you consider (as is or modified) based on your assessment. The key will be basing that argument on a good read of existing knowledge, good evidence created yourselves, and sound reasoning and analysis.
Details
In the following, I lay out the sections that should be included in your 20 page (or less) report plus a one-page executive summary, in order, with details on expectations for each section. Overall, the format should use APA citation formatting (for both in-text citations and references list), 12-point Times New Roman font, and single-spaced. The first page should be a cover sheet with a title and all group member names clearly printed.
Executive Summary
This section does not count toward your page count. The report must include a 1-page, single-spaced summary of the full report. The summary should lay out the problem, guiding principles for the solution, the three alternative approaches considered, and finally, the final recommendation. Be clear and concise.
Many students find summarizing their extended research in a limited space challenging, but such summarizing is an important skill to build. A big part of being prepared in a professional role is doing all the work to get to your answer, knowing how you got to your answer well enough to answer clarifying questions, and identifying for yourself and others what is truly important for making a particular decision. Remember that in this context, there’s a full report detailing your process and thinking that will follow the summary; it’s okay for the summary to leave details out to get to the bottom-line points.
Introduction
A 1-2 page introduction that should resemble the executive summary, but with added details on how you approached the problem and how the remainder of the report is structured. A good introduction should provide readers a clear understanding of how you are defining the problem, how you are proposing to resolve the problem, how you are weighing solutions, and the process by which you analyzed your options (e.g., what data did you use? what criteria were policies judged against?). Note that professional reports are not mystery novels - readers should know your final conclusion by the end of the introduction.
Policy/Program Alternatives Considered
This section will include subsections for each of the three alternative proposals (the status quo, their proposed solution, an alternative you introduce for consideration) for advising your client on a solution for the problem you chose to help solve. Each proposal should be 3-4 pages and should include 1) an overview and justification of the status quo situation or policy proposal, 2) a short overview of the proposal’s costs (both direct and indirect, such as opportunity costs or negative externalities) and benefits, 3) a stakeholder analysis of 3-4 main stakeholders impacted by the proposed policy, and 4) the political costs and benefits of the proposal based on your stakeholder analysis. You may use no more than 3 tables, in text, in each proposal subsection. Tables should fit on one page, include a title above them, and be discussed in the text to aid reader understanding and complement the proposal narrative.
When discussing costs and benefits, use your research to create grounded and defensible estimates. If, for instance, one externality is pollution, do not simply list pollution as an externality; instead, be specific about the kind of pollution, the health care costs related to exposure to that pollution, the estimate number of people subject to exposure-related health issues, and the estimated economic cost of that exposure. Treat benefits similarly - look at the same proposed policy in other places and any research documenting benefits, then estimate the benefits of your proposal using population or scale differences in your client’s context. Finally, when doing your stakeholder analysis, be sure to quantify some of the political angles - how many voters will be affected positively versus negatively? Which stakeholders have power and what kind of power, financial resources, and commitment to the issue do they have?
Analysis of the Trade-offs and Recommendation
The final section will be a 3-5 page analysis of the three plans in terms of efficiency, effectiveness, equity, and political impact of each plan leading to your final recommendation. As with the background and related research section, this section should include some research on how to define and measure these dimensions of each plan and anchor your recommendation in how each plan compares on these four dimensions. In the introduction, the nature and history of the problem you are tackling and your goals in solving it should have been articulated clearly and will help you gauge each proposed alternative proposals against those goals and priorities.
Roles and Responsibilities
As with any team project, it is helpful to have clear roles and responsibilities in completing the project. Below is a table of roles and responsibilities that each group will need to assign. I highly recommend groups assigning the editing role to who they believe to be a strong writer in the group.
| Role | Responsibility |
|---|---|
| Introduction, Executive Summary, Analysis, and Recommendation, and Editor | Write the Executive Summary and Introduction, Analysis, and Recommendation Sections. Suggest edits and revisions to other sections strictly for flow and cohesion. |
| Background and Related Research and Status Quo Policy Alternative | Write the background and related research section. Describe the status quo policy in the issue area you are doing your capstone on. |
| Alternative Proposed by Client (if relevant; an original policy alternative if client not proposing an alternative to the status quo) | Describe the policy alternative being proposed by the client, with documentation and relate to existing evidence and relevant stakeholders. |
| Original Policy Alternative Proposed by Group | Describe a policy alternative proposed by the group and relate to existing evidence and relevant stakeholders. |
Teams should plan to meet to assign roles, sign the group role contract, and submit the signed contract on Brightspace by midnight on March 8th.
Presentation
As groups, you will prepare a 15-minute presentation of your final report. The presentation will be delivered in class on May 8th. A good presentation should be polished, on time, and should provide a clear overview of 1) the nature of the problem you are facing and the priorities you carried into resolving it (guided by your research), 2) the three alternatives you considered, and 3) your analysis of their trade-offs and final recommendation.
You will turn in:
A .PDF of your slides.
Reminder on good presentation basics:
- Introduce yourselves briefly at the beginning and give a brief purpose statement of the presentation.
- Make sure your slides are not overly wordy and provide complementary information that does not distract from your own words as you present
- Keep on time
- Practice a few times before the final run
- Make sure you have polished transitions between slides as a speaker and between speakers
- Remember you are summarizing in a presentation: not every detail or thought from the final paper needs to be in it
Peer Evaluation
Peer evaluations are due May 12th by Midnight. Instructions are provided on Brightspace.
Clients and Policy Problems
You will have 3 options to choose from as a group. On the first day of class (January 23rd), you will find a brief survey in Brightspace that will ask about your general availability for group collaboration and your client/policy problem preference to work on for the semester. I will do my best to assemble groups based on both availability and client preference, but, of course, I cannot guarantee that everyone will have perfect alignment. Below, I provide a description of your three options for clients/policy issues and some basic background materials to get you started (all of these problems have a great deal of literature for review and related issues to research).
Restoring Urban Land
In recent decades, urban highways, many initiated during the Eisenhower administration, have been both reaching their end of life and require infrastructural maintenance or reconsideration. Many cities have begun reconsidering urban highways entirely as a consequence of their size and potential externalities (emissions, traffic accidents). In Albany, I-787 has been considered for removal and change.
Your group is to advise Representative Gabriella Romero, Senator Patricia Fahy, and Governor Kathy Hochul on the direction to take with I-787.
Status quo: Continue to maintain I-787 as is.
Background materials
Recent DOT study on potential removal: DOT
Housing and Affordability
In many places throughout the country, housing affordability has become a pressing issue. Both presidential candidates have noted housing affordability as a top problem to tackle. Your group will choose either presidential candidate as a client and craft a federal policy proposal to increase housing supply for their coming administration to implement. Note that you will be summarizing the status quo of policies shaping housing supply, focuing on federal policies, will also analyze the alternative for the client you choose, and will add a policy alternative of your own.
Background materials
To get an introduction to the problem, start with this report documenting the housing supply problem in the US. The GAO has covered the problem as well in a brief blog post and the left-leaning Center for American Progress has also provided a report on the problem.
Status Quo: Our current local, state, and federal system for approving and financing housing supply.
Democratic Party platform: Platform for 2024.
Donald Trump policy alternative: See his executive order from his previous administration.
Revitalizing an Old Downtown
Governor Hochul has annouced a $200 million grant for revitalizing downtown Albany. At the same time, the Greyhound bus station in downtown Albany has reached its end of life and the city is in the process of considering redevelopment proposals. Recently, a group of developers proposed replacing the current station and surrounding parking lots with a complex of hotels, businesses, and apartments anchored by a Major League Soccer stadium. For this project, both MLS and the NWLS have announced support for establishing teams if a stadium is built.1 A task force has been created that includes the Mayor of Albany, representatives from Empire State Development, representatives of the Capitalize Albany Foundation, and the Albany County government to discuss plans and funding for redeveloping the downtown site, including the currently proposed soccer stadium-based use.
The task force has hired you to prepare a report comparing alternatives for re-developing the 8-acre site downtown, currently owned by the Capitalize Albany Foundation on behalf of the city. One of the proposals under consideration is the proposed MLS stadium and surrounding hotel, business, and housing units. You are to describe the status quo land-use and develop an additional policy alternative to consider for the site. Analyze the the plans and make a recommendation to the task force. Your budget limit is $200 million and can include additional projects downtown outside of the 8-acre site that would complement the efforts at the site.
Background materials
To get a sense of the proposed stadium development, read these three articles. As a starting point for your research, you can find a review of research on stadium projects here.
Helping a Non-Profit
Refugee and Immigrant Support Services of Emmaus, Inc. (RISSE) has served the refugee and immigrant community in New York’s Capital Region since 2007, beginning as one faith community’s effort to help a small group of Congolese and Rwandan refugees resettling in Albany. Since then, RISSE has grown to meet the ever-changing needs of newcomers arriving in the Capital Region. It is now a multi-service agency, offering English as a New Language (ENL) classes, youth programming, wrap-around case management, employment support, and immigration assistance. Its mission is to help refugees and immigrants thrive in their new home and integrate into the fabric of the community. Based in Albany but growing to include satellite programs throughout the region, RISSE serves hundreds of refugee and immigrant families each year who represent more than 90 countries and speak more than 40 languages. RISSE serves any newcomer in the Capital Region, regardless of language, country of origin, income, length of time in the US, or immigration status. It envisions the Capital Region as becoming a model community for welcoming, supporting, and celebrating refugee and immigrant neighbors. Each year, RISSE serves between 1000 and 1500 individuals across various programs.
The political context for RISSE’s work is indeed dynamic and has increased demand. The Capital Region typically receives about 400 individuals through the refugee resettlement process each year. Since Memorial Day Weekend 2023, the Capital Region received an additional 836 asylum seekers bussed here from New York City. RISSE has played a key role in the emergency response effort to serve these newcomers. Alongside a coalition of community-based service providers like Columbia County Sanctuary Movement, Capital District Latinos, Albany Law School, and many others, RISSE is committed to this ongoing humanitarian response despite limited resources.
In addition, immigration policy under the new U.S. Administration is uncertain. President Trump has suggested a mass deportation plan and the removal of hundreds of thousands of new arrivals, which could result in family separations and would likely increase service needs for organizations like RISSE. Thus, considerations about RISSE’s funding model are front and center.
Operationally, RISSE relies on government funding (mostly local and state), corporate sponsors, foundation grants, and individual donors. In a recent Times Union profile on RISSE (on Brightspace), Executive Director, Daniel Butterworth, discussed dreams for RISSE’s newly acquired space in Albany: a “RISSE Café”. Business for Good, a local philanthropic funder read the article and immediately called RISSE to see a more developed program proposal. It would like to see initial proposals for a RISSE Café as a possible use for the newly acquired space in Albany (the former Emmaus United Methodist Church, 715 Morris St, Albany, NY 12208). You have been hired to assess the status quo and develop a cafe proposal.
Status quo: Programming and revenue sources as planned for 2025, continuing into the future.
Program/Revenue Source alternative(s): A “RISSE Café”
Background materials
Footnotes
From here forward, the scenario is a fictionalized status of the proposal. In reality, the proposal is still seeking support from MLS and potential state support.↩︎