Focus on the U.S. Gulf States pdf

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e RAND Corporation is a nonprot institution that helps improve policy and
decisionmaking through research and analysis.
is electronic document was made available from www.rand.org as a public service
of the RAND Corporation.
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES
EDUCATION AND THE ARTS
ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT
HEALTH AND HEALTH CARE
INFRASTRUCTURE AND
TRANSPORTATION
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
LAW AND BUSINESS
NATIONAL SECURITY
POPULATION AND AGING
PUBLIC SAFETY
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

TERRORISM AND
HOMELAND SECURITY
is product is part of the RAND Corporation corporate publication series. Corporate
publications describe or promote RAND divisions and programs, summarize research
results, or announce upcoming events.
Committed to the Region and the Well-Being of Its Residents
www.rand.org | www.rand.org/gulf-states
Focus on the U.S. Gulf States
he RAND Gulf States Policy Institute started in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina to inform policies for long-
term recovery and economic development in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. In the months following
the storm, the RAND Corporation contributed its services and tackled issues such as housing and health
care as well as other needs of families affected by the storm. Years later, we have offices in New Orleans
and Jackson, Mississippi, and remain committed to the region for the long term.
Expertise to Tackle the Big Challenges
RAND Gulf States harnesses the expertise of RAND’s
more than 1,200 researchers to inform a wide variety of
policy and technical subjects critical to the region. These
include:
• coastal protection and disaster preparedness
• environment, energy, and transportation
• health and community resilience
• economic development
• education and workforce development
• safety and justice.
T
Objective Analysis. Effective Solutions.
RAND is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy
and decisionmaking through research and analysis.
Our goal is to help planners and policymakers make
informed choices and develop sound public policy based

on facts, data, and evidence. As a nonpartisan organization,
RAND is widely respected for operating independent of
political and commercial pressures.
RAND Gulf States engages regional leaders and
residents with practical, action-oriented research in the
public interest. Our products are available to the public
online at no cost at www.rand.org/gulf-states
Headquarters Campus
1776 Main Street, P.O. Box 2138
Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138
CP-710
COASTAL PROTECTION AND RESTORATION. RAND Gulf
States played a key role in the development of Louisiana’s
2012 Coastal Master Plan by creating two models: a new
hurricane flood risk model to assess projects designed
to reduce flood damage and a planning framework and
decision support model to develop and compare different risk
reduction and restoration projects. We continue to support the
implementation of the Master Plan through updated, novel
research methods.
COMMUNITY RESILIENCE. As the U.S. East Coast recovers
from Superstorm Sandy and plans for the future, it can look to
the Gulf States and RAND expertise on resilience, which is the
ability to prepare for, respond to, and recover from natural and
man-made disasters. We developed an emergency planning
toolkit that presents high-priority preparedness activities and
documents to help child-serving organizations customize their
emergency plans. Also, researchers testified before Congress
on ways that governments can leverage the strengths of
nongovernmental organizations in disaster response and

improve ways that spending is managed.
HOUSING AND DEMOGRAPHICS. One of RAND Gulf States’
first projects was to describe the pre-hurricane housing
markets in Mississippi’s three coastal counties, the damage
they sustained, and what might inhibit recovery. Other studies
have proposed goals for an effective U.S. Gulf Coast residential
insurance market and changes to the National
Flood Insurance Program.
HEALTH. Three of the five American cities most affected by
new HIV and AIDS cases in recent years are located in the Gulf
States region, according to the latest data released by the
Washington, DC
•

Pittsburgh, PA
•

New Orleans, LA
•
Jackson, MS
•

Boston, MA
•

Doha, QA
•

Cambridge, UK
•

Brussels, BE
GULF STATES POLICY INSTITUTE
Gary Cecchine
Director
Email:
Phone: 504.299.3432
650 Poydras Street, Suite 1400 • New Orleans, LA 70130
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. RAND researchers
have examined attitudes, beliefs, and actions of several ethnic,
religious, and socioeconomic populations with regard to HIV
and AIDS. These studies can help congressional, state, and local
policymakers understand how to approach the challenges posed
by HIV/AIDS.
MENTAL HEALTH. Events at Sandy Hook Elementary School
highlight the risk of violence in the lives of our nation’s
children. RAND collaborated with a team of professionals to
develop, implement, and evaluate a school-based intervention
to help children traumatized by violence, natural disasters,
accidents, and traumatic losses. The program, based on
cognitive-behavioral therapy, was used successfully to help
children who showed symptoms of post-traumatic stress after
Hurricane Katrina.
EDUCATION. After Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans replaced
the city’s existing school system with a decentralized choice-
based system of both charter and district-run schools. An
examination of principal, teacher, and parent surveys found
many similarities between charter and traditional schools’
performance but greater satisfaction among charter school
parents with their children’s schools, as well as more perceived

choices.
PUBLIC SAFETY. In one early project, RAND Gulf States worked
with the New Orleans Police Department in its effort to recruit
and retain officers that began after Hurricane Katrina, and
to improve recruitment, retention, and the skill mix of the
force. More recently, RAND Gulf States completed a study on
the public health implications of former prisoners reentering
society.
Examples of How We Make a Difference
“RAND Gulf States is committed toworking with
partners in the region to takeon the Gulf’s most
critical issuesthrough objective analysis.”
Gary Cecchine, Director