Eve Brank, Aaron Douglas Professor of psychology at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, was interviewed for an Aug. 17 Stateline article on parental responsibility laws.
Research by Brank and colleagues has found that legal professionals generally do not view the laws as effective, which could help explain why the laws are common but rarely enforced. She said there is also potential for the laws to be disproportionately applied to single-parent households, low-income families and families of color.
“We need a pretty comprehensive view, and thinking seriously about whether punishment will actually garner the outcomes that we want,” Brank told Stateline. “Are there ways we could instead focus our attention and resources on prevention?”
Bedross Der Matossian, history, has been appointed director of genocide research at the Zoryan Institute, The Armenian Mirror-Spectator reported Aug. 6. Der Matossian is an internationally recognized scholar of the Armenian genocide, the late Ottoman Empire and modern Middle Eastern history.
Der Matossian also wrote an Aug. 7 op-ed for The Jerusalem Post on the city’s Armenian community facing increased harassment, intimidation and discrimination from extremist haredi and nationalist Jewish youths. He called for existing laws to be consistently and vigorously enforced; stronger legal sanctions to be considered; human rights organizations to investigate recurring incidents; and global media to call more attention to the incidents.
The university’s Center on Children, Families and the Law is joining Right at Home, a national initiative to stop homelessness before it starts. As one of 10 partner communities, the center will work with Destination: Home and a coalition of national organizations to build a Nebraska homelessness prevention system modeled on Destination: Home’s nationally recognized approach. Stories on the partnership appeared in KLKN, KOLN/KGIN and Public News Service.
Kevin Smith, political science, was interviewed for an Aug. 26 Newsweek article on the U.S. Senate race between Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts and independent challenger Dan Osborn. Smith said the race could be competitive, but he gives the edge to Ricketts in the absence of independent polling showing Osborn ahead. “The big reason for that is Republicans simply outnumber Democrats and independents in the state,” Smith said. “That’s the bottom line.”
