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Faculty Member Appointed as Congressional Fellow

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News Feature
July 13, 2016

Dr. Emily M. Douglas has spent much of her academic career studying ways to promote the well being of children and families, including how to reduce deaths from child abuse and neglect.

 

Now the associate professor of social work has a unique opportunity to put her expertise to use on a national level as a result of her recent appointment as a Congressional fellow for the Society for Research on Child Development.

 

Dr. Douglas will be on leave from BSU for the upcoming academic year to undertake the fellowship, in which she will do policy and legislative work for a Congress member or a committee on Capitol Hill.

 

“It’s very exciting,” she said, noting that serving as a Congressional fellow “has been on my radar screen since graduate school. My graduate training was all in public policy, so I have always had an interest in legislation and how academics can use their research to produce more effective public policies. So it’s a great opportunity and a good time in my career to do it.”

 

Dr. Douglas, who is also director of BSU’s graduate writing program, was one of two people selected for the Congressional fellowship, which begins Sept. 1.

 

“My hope is that I can work with a legislative committee to focus on child and family issues,” said Dr. Douglas, whose duties could range from helping to draft legislation to writing literature reviews, preparing policy briefs, and helping line up experts to testify before committees.

 

A BSU faculty member since 2006, Dr. Douglas is an expert in fatal-child maltreatment – the subject of an upcoming book – along with, partner violence, corporal punishment, and divorced families. With a colleague, she also conducts research on male victims of partner violence.

 

Dr. Douglas said she has taken some initial steps to apply her research to the policy world, including testifying recently before a Congressionally created committee on child abuse and neglect deaths, and speaking at the Massachusetts State House. She now looks forward to building on that experience.

 

“I think it will help me to develop and pursue new research questions,” Dr. Douglas said of the yearlong immersion in public policy, adding that “having those on-the-ground experiences to share with students will really enrich the time I spend in the classroom.”

 


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