Speakers at Marquette – Page 66 – Marquette University Law School Faculty Blog

Education Improvements Key to Better Opportunities for Milwaukeeans, Chetty Says

Post author:Alan J. Borsuk
Post published:November 6, 2013
Post category:Milwaukee Public Schools Public Speakers at Marquette

The answer to the question of whether America is still a land of opportunity varies widely depending on where you live – and the Milwaukee area is one of the places where the answer is not so good, a prominent economist told an audience of several hundred at the Marquette University Alumni Memorial Union on Tuesday.

The answer to what Milwaukee might do to improve the opportunities of success for children from lower income homes emphasizes better education, Raj Chetty of Harvard University said.

Chetty spoke at a session that combined the Marquette University Department of Economics’ Marburg Memorial Lecture with the Marquette Law School’s “On the Issues with Mike Gousha.” Chetty spoke for about 45 minutes, followed by a conversation in which Gousha, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel editorial page editor David Haynes, and audience members asked questions.

Nancy King to Speak at Marquette on Punishment for Repeat Offenders

Post author:Michael M. O'Hear
Post published:November 4, 2013
Post category:Criminal Law & Process Public Speakers at Marquette

I’m looking forward to this year’s Barrock Lecture on Criminal Law, which will be delivered by Professor Nancy King of Vanderbilt Law School on November 18. King has long been one of my favorite writers on criminal procedure and sentencing. Whatever the topic, she can always be counted on to bring a refreshingly commonsensical perspective to bear.

King’s Lecture will focus on the sentencing of recidivists. Here’s the description:

Courts and legislatures today routinely authorize punishment for repeat offenders that is far more severe than the punishment assigned those convicted for the first time. This reliance upon criminal history when setting sentences has a surprisingly fascinating history. It also has an uncertain future. Recent constitutional rulings may threaten established procedures for assessing sentences for prior offenders; researchers continue to question the relationship between criminal history and either culpability or future dangerousness; and commentators disagree whether using criminal history to calibrate punishment entrenches racial disparity in sentencing or, rather, helps to avoid it. Professor King will address these and related issues as she discusses the ongoing challenge of punishing recidivists in the 21st century.

The Lecture, which is open to the public, will start at 4:30 in Eckstein Hall. Registration information and other details are available here.

Pulitzer Winner Calls for News Reporting Focused on Solutions

Post author:Alan J. Borsuk
Post published:October 17, 2013
Post category:Media & Journalism Public Speakers at Marquette

Solutions journalism – what’s that? A leading advocate for this approach to news reporting told an “On the Issues with Mike Gousha” audience in Eckstein Hall on Wednesday that it was, at the same time, a simple concept and an important change from the historic practices of most news organizations.

“The reigning myth of journalism is that we cover problems, and that’s all we do,” said Tina Rosenberg, co-founder of the Solutions Journalism Network. ”The solution to the problem is not our business, someone else will come and take care of that.”

But, she said, “That model has failed. It’s not a good model for helping society learn what it needs to improve itself, which is what the purpose of journalism should be. Our view is that it is a perfectly legitimate part of journalism to cover, in addition to problems, what is going on to respond to those problem.”