In the United States, thousands of people experiencing homelessness are arrested and charged with crimes each year. Often, these charges stem from laws that criminalize acts and behaviors associated with homelessness, such as sleeping in public areas and panhandling. Advocates commonly argue that housing and social services will reduce these behaviors. Public policy scholars Andrew Sullivan and Stephanie Casey Pierce will examine how increased shelter availability impacts quality of life arrests for people experiencing homelessness.

Warn and release interventions – an intervention strategy that provides early warnings and in which typically no record is created – are a common informal diversion strategy. Despite their use, there is limited evidence on how warn and release interventions impact youth outcomes, particularly within the school context. Public policy scholar Jo King and education scholar Luis A. Rodriguez will estimate the impact of warn and release practices in schools on student behavior, including attendance, test scores, and suspensions.

The State of Wisconsin is one of the few states that imposes no interest rate limits on payday loans and currently upholds one of the highest limits on the maximum amount one can borrow. Despite these favorable conditions, licensed payday lender operations in Wisconsin have declined nearly 90 percent over the past decade. Public policy scholar Melody Harvey will examine how the decrease in payday lender operations has affected participation in Wisconsin’s state-provided energy assistance programs.

Inadequate nutrition can harm children’s health and development, including academic outcomes. A promising way to boost child nutrition is through home meal programs. Psychologists Rebecca Ryan, Ariel Kalil, and Anna Gassman-Pines, sociologist Pamela Herd, political scientist and public policy scholar Carolyn Barnes, and public policy scholar and behavioral scientist Elizabeth Linos will evaluate the effects of a home meal program on student academic outcomes in a low-income community. They will conduct a field experiment for their study.