URBANA, Ill. — Just a month into their placements, scholars from across Illinois in the University of Illinois Extension Illini Science Policy Program attended the second annual joint Policy Summit hosted collaboratively by Illinois Extension and the Center for Social and Behavioral Science. Scholars joined fellows from the Policy and Research Legislative Fellows Program for a day devoted to presentations and discussions on topics that will impact their roles. The summit was designed to enhance the scholars’ and fellows’ understanding of public service and public policy so that the work that they will be doing in their placements has a strong foundation.
Launched in 2020, the ISPP is a post-graduate opportunity that has placed over 40 postgraduates in state or legislative offices for a one-year paid appointment where they contribute their knowledge and expertise while learning more about the intersection of public service and public policy. Their work focuses on the critical issues areas of Illinois Extension and the policy decisions affecting those resources.
Similarly, the PRLF launched in the summer of 2022 as a non-partisan initiative supported by the Office of the Chancellor’s Office of Public Engagement. Its goal is to match graduate students at the University of Illinois with state legislators representing Champaign-Urbana or neighboring districts to collaborate on policy-significant research-based projects that will improve the lives of Illinoisans.
Key campus and community stakeholders presented during the summit to help the scholars and fellows understand more about Illinois state government, public policy, communicating research, and communicating with diverse audiences. Participants also engaged in conversations around social media usage and with panelists about careers in public service and politics.
“The Policy Summit was designed so that the scholars and fellows would understand both the breadth and depth of public service and public policy from a variety of perspectives. We were fortunate to have a distinguished group of presenters who shared their experiences and expertise with our group, as well as took time to just talk with them over lunch,” said Evangeline Pianfetti, director of the ISPP and Extension outreach associate for government relations.
For more information about the Illini Science Policy Program, visit extension.illinois.edu/ispp. For more on the Policy and Research Legislative Fellows Program, visit go.illinois.edu/PRLF or subscribe to the CSBS newsletter.
About CSBS: The Center for Social & Behavioral Science fosters innovative social and behavioral science research across disciplines at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, enhances the ecosystem for social and behavioral scientists on our campus, and supports public engagement at the local, state, national, and international level to enhance the societal impact of social and behavioral science research.
University of Illinois Extension develops educational programs, extends knowledge, and builds partnerships to support people, communities, and their environments as part of the state's land-grant institution. Extension serves as the leading public outreach effort for University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences in all 102 Illinois counties through a network of 27 multi-county units and over 700 staff statewide. Extension’s mission is responsive to eight strategic priorities — community, economy, environment, food and agriculture, health, partnerships, technology and discovery, and workforce excellence — that are served through six program areas — 4-H youth development, agriculture and agribusiness, community and economic development, family and consumer science, integrated health disparities, and natural resources, environment, and energy.