Laura Tach
Laura Tach, an associate professor of policy analysis and management, is taking on the role of associate director for policy engagement at the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research.
Tach is a sociologist whose research focuses on poverty and social policy. She is the co-director of Cornell Project 2-Gen, a research and policy hub that supports vulnerable caregivers and their children.
In her new role, Tach plans to expand the BCTR’s engagement with policymakers at the local, state and federal levels.
“We will create opportunities to connect Cornell faculty and students with policymakers and vice versa,” she said. “This will enhance the impact of Cornell research on pressing social issues, while also helping Cornell faculty and students understand the needs of the policy community.”
For example, Tach and the Project 2-Gen team hosted event in Albany last spring that brought together faculty, staff and students to share their research with state legislators. Participants discussed the opioid epidemic, the state of infant care and improving Medicaid for vulnerable New York families in a non-partisan conversation. Tach is organizing a similar event in Albany this year to discuss research on criminal justice reform.
BCTR Director Christopher Wildeman said Tach is an amazing asset to the center and the university as a whole.
“Laura is already an incredibly valuable part of BCTR through her work with Project 2Gen, and we are looking forward to seeing how her engagement with policymakers in Albany and beyond increases with her new role,” he said.
Tach received her Ph.D. in sociology and social policy at Harvard University in 2010. Prior to joining the Department of Policy Analysis and Management at Cornell, she was a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Postdoctoral Scholar at the University of Pennsylvania.
