17.20 - Fall 2003

bullet Syllabus (pdf format)

 

Paper topics

Please choose one of the following topics for your term project.

  1. The City of Cambridge uses a Proportional Representation system for election of its city council. How does this system affect politics in the city government? Would a districted system, such as Boston and most other cities use, be better?
  2. In 1978, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld limited affirmative action programs for universities. This year the Court upheld its decision in Bakke v. University of California, but its decision did rule that some affirmative action policies are not appropriate. What affirmative action policy should MIT have in the wake of recent court decisions?
  3. Boston and Cambridge public schools have lottery systems for assignment of students to elementary, middle, and high schools. Until recently race was used as a factor in these assignments, but the use of race was struck down by the state supreme court. You are called on to advise the cities on how they should assign children to schools. What would you advise that these cities do?
  4. A number of states are under court orders to equalize expenditures on public schools across school districts. In states like New Hampshire and Ohio, efforts to equalize expenditures have caused political gridlock. What are the politics of compliance with these court orders? What political and normative problems does property tax support of public schools create? How might these states resolve the problem?
  5. Thomas Finneran is the speaker of the Massachusetts House. He is usually viewed as a strong political leader. He has withstood several challenges and reputedly has gotten the better of his political rivals within the state legislature, including the state senate. Why is Finneran so powerful?
  6. Professor Ansolabehere lives in the city of Newton. Cities such as his are notorious for dumping pollution in the Charles River, despite the best efforts of the state to clean the river. Institutions such as MIT also contribute waste to the river, and have a strong interest in a cleaner river, especially for recreation. Who governs the Charles River? What could be done to ensure that the river is better maintained? What are the political and compliance problems that must be solved in any institution for governing this public resource? [This topic is about the governance of public goods and the design of institutions.]
  7. There are no political parties within the City of Cambridge, but something like a party division existed when the city had rent control. There were pro-rent control city councilors and ant-rent control city councilors, and this was the political division on many issues. Rent control in Boston, Brookline, and Cambridge ended in the early 1990s. Does Cambridge (and Boston and Brookline) have such an organized political division today? If so, how does it relate to the old division? What happened to the pro-rent control/anti-rent control division? Do these organizations still exist? How has the change since the early 1990s affected the city council? [This topic is about the nature of political divisions and party organizations.]
  8. Harvard and MIT own over half of the land in the City of Cambridge. What city policies affect the universities most? How are these institutions represented in the city government? How much influence do these institutions have on important decisions made by the council directly and indirectly through the election of the city council? [This topic is about how an “interest,” such as a corporation, that doesn’t vote has political power and influence.]
  9. You have the option of choosing your own topic, but it must be well-thought out and approved by your TA and the instructor by the third week of the term.