NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 31, 2010

CONTACT: ERIKA MARZORATI
517/432-6848, marzorat@law.msu.edu

MSU Law Student Speaks at Forum Analyzing Economy's Impact on Michigan Women

East Lansing, MI — Michigan State University College of Law student Jason Palmer participated in a March 24 public policy forum examining the impact of the current economic crisis on Michigan women and their families.

The forum, entitled "Michigan's Economic Turnaround: A Look at Women and Families," was the third in a four-part series hosted by the MSU Institute for Public Policy & Social Research (IPPSR). The event was co-sponsored by MSU's Center for Gender in Global Context. Each IPPSR forum features an expert panel that explores a particular angle of the overall theme, highlighting the ways in which research can inform public policy decisions, and detailing the affects those decisions can have on members of the community.

Palmer, a 3L at MSU Law and senior economic analyst with the Michigan Department of Energy, Labor & Economic Growth, provided statistics on how women in the state are faring in today's trying times. His presentation, "A Labor Market Snapshot of Michigan Women in the Economic Downturn," compared jobless rates and other employment-related measures for women inside and outside the state, and examined trends across gender, race, and age categories.

Joining Palmer to present data and discuss policy alternatives were Louise Jezierski, associate professor at James Madison College; Paulette Granberry Russell, director of MSU's Office for Inclusion and Intercultural Initiatives; and Donna Addkison, family economic self-sufficiency project director at Wider Opportunities for Women, a Washington, D.C., organization focused on helping women and families achieve financial independence.

The Institute for Public Policy and Social Research is dedicated to fostering relationships between academics and policymakers and using scholarly research to help solve current public policy problems.

Michigan State University College of Law is a leading institution of legal education with a long history of creating practice-ready attorneys. As one of only a few private law schools affiliated with a major research university, MSU Law offers comprehensive interdisciplinary opportunities combined with a personalized legal education. After 100 years as a private and independent Law College, the affiliation with MSU has put the Law College on an upward trajectory of national and international reputation and reach. MSU Law professors are gifted teachers and distinguished scholars, its curriculum is rigorous and challenging, and its facility is equipped with the latest resources—all affirming MSU Law's commitment to educating 21st-century lawyers.

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