Simon Fass

Simon Fass

Associate Professor of Public Policy and Political Economy
 
972-883-2938
GR 3.224
Simon Fass's Webpage
Tags: Social Data Analytics and Research Public Policy Political Economy

Professional Preparation

Ph.D. - Urban Planning
University of California - 1978
M.A. - Urban Planning
University of California - 1973
B. Architecture
University of British Columbia - 1970

Research Areas

Research Interests
Interests span a variety of policy themes, including education, economic development, justice, and substance abuse. Current research focus is on population growth and environmental degradation, the evolution of modern pawn broking, effectiveness of drug and mental health courts, and exploration of meanings that people attach to sacred structures.

Publications

Chad: Governance by the Grassroots, with G. Desloovere, Local Governance in Africa: The Challenges of Democratic Decentralization, Oluwu, D. and Wunsch, J. (eds), Lynne Rienner, Boulder, CO. 2005. 155-180 2005 - Publication
Where Have All the Hot Goods Gone? The Role of Pawnshops, with J. Francis, Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency. Vol. 1, No. 2, May 2004. 156-179 2004 - Publication
Getting Tough on Juvenile Crime: An Analysis of Costs and Benefits, with C-R. Pi, Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency. Vol. 39, No. 4, November 2002. 363-399 2002 - Publication
Surviving in the Informal Sector, in Arthur, C. and Dash, M. (eds.), A Haiti Anthology: libte, Marcus Weiner Publishers, Princeton NJ. 2000. 129-130 2000 - Publication
Fast Food, in Leary, M., Dermody, B. and Markusen, A. (eds.) Envisioning Cities and Regions, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN. 2000. 145-161 2000 - Publication
Survivre, Les Editions du CIDIHCA, Montreal. 1992. 450 pages. 1999 - Publication
Food Insecurity in Haiti, Crosslines, Vol. 4(8), No. 6. November 1996. 20-22 1996 - Publication
Fast Food in Development, World Development , Vol. 23, No. 9. September 1995. 1555-73. 1995 - Publication

Appointments

Associate Professor
University of Texas at Dallas [1988–Present]
Assistant Professor
University of Minnesota [1980–1988]
Evaluator
United States Agency for International Development [1980–1980]
Economist
World Bank [1979–1979]
Assistant Director/Planning
Asian Development Bank [1978–1979]
Economist
World Bank [1977–1977]
Economist
Inter-American Institute of Agricultural Sciences / Inter-American Development Bank [1976–1976]
Economist
Haitian Ministry of Finance [1976–1976]
Urban Planner
UN Centre for Human Settlements-Habitat [1974–1976]
Regional Planner
Southern California Association of Governments [1973–1973]

Projects

The Political Economy of Education in West Africa
1991–1991 paper, 8th Annual IEES (Incentives to Improve the Efficiency of Educational Systems) International Conference, Nov. 2-4, 1991, Alexandria, Virginia
The Housing Process in Port-au-Prince, Haiti
1988–1988 paper, Conference on Low-Income Shelter and Urban Development Issues and Strategies, July 28-29, 1988, Bridgetown, Barbados.
Economic Integration of Hmong Refugees in the United States
1989–1989 paper, Annual Meeting of the Association of American Geographers, March 19-22, 1989, Baltimore, Maryland.
Land Tenure and Informal Housing Processes in Haiti
1990–1990 paper, 32nd Annual Conference of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning, Nov. 1-4, 1990, Austin, Texas.
Social Policy Planning: Problems Looking for Solutions or Solutions Looking for Problems?
2018–2018 paper, 30th Annual Conference of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning, October, 1988, Buffalo, New York.

Additional Information

CONSULTATIONS (selected)

Factory Women's Center of Haiti

  • study of social and financial characteristics of street food vendors, 1989
  • evaluation of literacy and health training programs for factory workers, 1986-88


Haitian Association of Voluntary Agencies

  • analysis of association's financial constraints and development potential, 1986

Haitian Council of Bishops

  • design of national adult literacy and non-formal education program, 1989
  • preparation of institutional development strategy for Catholic primary schools, 1988

Inter-American Development Bank

  • analysis of population, income, employment, and housing characteristics, Haiti, 1991

Minnesota State Planning Agency-Governor's Task Force on Poverty and Jobs

  • analysis of state unemployment and poverty trends, 1984

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development -Club du Sahel

  • review of participatory research methods for promoting local development in West Africa, 1997
  • review of political development component of the Africa Long Term Perspective study, 1995
  • study of education and political decentralization in the Sahelian countries of West Africa, 1992


Swiss Development Cooperation Agency

  • evaluation, design and monitoring of project to improve community schooling, Chad, 1993-2000

United States Agency for International Development

  • design of national household income survey, Haiti, 1998
  • analysis of household expenditures for education, Haiti, 1995
  • study of financing of rural community schools, Chad, 1994
  • evaluation of private primary education project, Haiti, 1993
  • design of institutional development component for basic education, Benin, 1992
  • design of surveys on education expenditure and school finance, Haiti, 1991
  • assessment of agency's proposed 1989-90 strategy for education sector support, Haiti, 1988
  • design of strategic analysis of agency's disaster preparedness portfolio, 1989
  • economic analysis of informal housing and land markets, Haiti, 1988
  • design of institutional devolution strategy for primary education, Haiti, 1988
  • advice on low-income housing policy for the Caribbean region, 1987
  • analysis of economic and financial issues in primary education, Haiti, 1985
  • design of national food consumption, nutrition, and expenditure survey, Haiti, 1985
  • technical assistance to small business credit program, Tunisia, 1984
  • analysis of climate for industrial investment, Haiti, 1983
  • evaluation of worldwide small enterprise assistance program, 1983
  • presentations on fertility and economic growth, Burkina Faso, 1982 and Mali, 1981
  • evaluation of rural employment research project, Thailand, 1982
  • study of the characteristics of rural small enterprise and industry, Cameroon, 1982
  • analysis of household income distribution, Haiti, 1982
  • technical assistance to regional development research project, Cameroon, 1981
  • regional economic analysis, Burkina Faso, 1981
  • design of regional development programs, Burkina Faso 1980

World Bank

  • redesign of public primary education project, Haiti, 1993
  • analysis of adult education requirements in relation to the informal economy, Indonesia, 1990
     
Awards
  • J. William Fulbright Senior Specialist, Council for International Exchange of Scholars, 2002 
  • Outstanding Scholarship Award, Comparative and International Education Society, 1990 
  • Outstanding Academic Book, Association of College and Research Libraries, 1989
School activities and committees (recent)
  • Coordinator, Graduate Certificate in Evaluation Research program, 2009- 
  • member, PAFF Methods Qualifying Examination Committee, 2010- 
  • member, NASPAA Accreditation preparation Committee, 2009-10 
  • member, PPPE Methods Qualifying Examination Committee, 2004-10 
  • member, EPPS Faculty Advisory Committee 2008-10 
  • member, Committee on the MPA Program, 2000-2005 
  • member, Quality Teaching Committee, 2000-2002

News Articles

EPPS Team Examines Construction Accidents in Gulf Region
Inadequate training, limited use of safety equipment and a lack of government oversight contribute to deaths and injuries among construction workers in the rapidly developing Arabian Gulf region, also known as the Persian Gulf, a UT Dallas study found.

Three School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences researchers analyzed a sample of 519 incidents and interviewed safety experts to understand the types and causes of construction accidents in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The study was published online in the journal Applied Ergonomics.
University Adds New Graduate Program in Social Data Analytics
Beginning in fall 2017, the School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences (EPPS) will offer a new master’s degree in data analytics and research that focuses on the social sciences. 
 The interdisciplinary social data analytics and research degree is designed to meet the demand for graduates who are highly skilled in methods of analysis and research in public, nonprofit and business organizations, said Dr. Simon Fass, associate professor of public policy and director of the new program.
U.T. Dallas' Dr. Simon Fass Appointed to Roster Of Prestigious Fulbright Senior Specialists Program
U.T. Dallas' Dr. Simon Fass Appointed to Roster Of Prestigious Fulbright Senior Specialists Program RICHARDSON, Texas (June 12, 2002) -- Dr. Simon Fass, associate professor of public administration and political economy in the School of Social Sciences at The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD), has been named to the prestigious Senior Specialists Roster of the Fulbright Scholar Program, the U.S. government's flagship program in international educational exchange.

As a result of his five-year appointment, Fass, whose work focuses on social, economic and political development in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean, will visit universities overseas for periods of up to six weeks to lecture and conduct collaborative research in the fields of public administration and urban planning.
UTD Professor to Evaluate Effectiveness Of Dallas County Juvenile Drug Court
RICHARDSON, Texas (Dec. 3, 2003) - A professor at The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) has received a federal grant to evaluate Dallas County's juvenile drug court program. 

Dr. Simon Fass, associate professor of public affairs in UTD's School of Social Sciences, has won an award of $52,000 from the United States Department of Justice to study the effectiveness of the innovative drug court program in reducing juvenile delinquency.   Fass' grant is part of a larger award of $500,000 that the Dallas County Juvenile Department will use to fund the court for the next three years. 

Juvenile drug courts are intensive, judicially supervised treatment programs intended to reduce substance abuse and delinquency among youth and their families.   Under the program, judges impose a range of sanctions and incentives to hold youth - who are subject to frequent drug testing - accountable for their actions.   The court approach differs from standard judicial practice wherein a young person violating drug laws might simply get a warning for a first offense, be placed on probation for a second, and along the way receive limited or no counseling and treatment.
Two UTD Professors to Study How Juvenile Justice Responds to Girls Who Are Arrested
RICHARDSON, Texas (Jan. 27, 2004) — Dr. Kimberly Kempf-Leonard and Dr. Bruce Jacobs, two professors of criminology, sociology and political economy in the School of Social Sciences at The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD), have been awarded $72,000 by the state Criminal Justice Division to study how the juvenile justice system in Texas responds to the growing number of girls arrested.   The funds are part of a larger federal challenge grant program from the U. S. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. 

A goal of the research project will be to help ensure that female juvenile offenders (up to age 16) in the Dallas County Juvenile Justice System are treated equitably and effectively.   Specifically, the UTD research will try to determine whether, how, and at which stages there may be differential processing based on gender and to assess current difficulties in the delivery of services for girls and ways in which modifications can make the system better.

Affiliations

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
Association of Public Policy and Management National Association of Scholars American Association of University Professors

Funding

Implementation and evaluation of Drug Court Parent Empowerment Program
$233,150 - U.S. Dept. of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Juvenile Accountability Block Grant [2007–2008]
Assessment of efficacy of program to prevent relapse among recovering addicts
$54,000 - U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, SAMHS Administration [2004–2007]
Evaluation of impact of Dallas County Juvenile Drug Court on recidivism
$52,000 - U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Assistance [2003–2006]
Evaluation of effectiveness of substance abuse treatment programs
$27,000 - Dallas County Juvenile Department [2000–2000]
Cost-benefit analysis of juvenile justice system sentencing
$218,000 - U.S. Dept of Justice, National Institute of Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Prevention [1997–2000]