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Biography
I'm Laura McKenna and this is Apt. 11D.
I’m a writer specializing in politics and society. I like writing about education, technology, women’s issues, media politics, and public policy.
This blog is an idea incubator. I highlight the best articles of the day, the topic du jour. Then I add my two cents and moderate discussion. A lively discussion on this blog might become a more polished article the next day.
As a former political science professor, I look at every topic – even my own personal stories – with a political lens and ask Qui Bono? or Who Benefits? I collect facts and figures like other people collect trains and baseball cards.
I’m also a mom with two boys aged 13 and 10. My ten-year old is on the autism spectrum. Both boys frequently appear in this blog. Sometimes I’ll throw in a book review or pictures of a home renovation project. Lately, I’m obsessed with photography and estate sales. Admittedly, there is a certain amount of random-ness to this blog.
I started blogging in 2003. If you offer me a drink at a bar, I will gladly tell you some war stories.
I write for a variety of sources, including The Atlantic and GOOD. Here’s a sample of my latest articles:
After Newtown, I'm Reconsidering Give My Son 'Halo 4' For Christmas, The Atlantic, December 17, 2012
Extra Pay for Great Teachers: Newark's Simple Idea Is a Breakthrough, The Atlantic, November 30, 2012
Can College Students Handle Their Own Finances, NPR, Oct. 16, 2012
The Secret Weapon in the Fight Against Bad Student Debt? It's Our Professors, The Atlantic, Oct. 10, 2012
Mommyblogging, Inc.: Why Women Rule the Social Web, The Atlantic, August 1, 2012
A Work-Life Balance Roadmap for the 99%, The Atlantic, June 26, 2012
The Economic Impact of Autism on Families, The Atlantic, May 31, 2012
50 Shades of Money, The Atlantic, May 31, 2012
How Good Parents and Good Intentions Lead to Dramatically Unequal Schools, The Atlantic, May 31, 2012
The Good News and The Bad News About Public Colleges, The Atlantic, May 24, 2012
Why School Integration Is So Hard, The Atlantic, May 21, 2012
The Big Idea That Can Revolutionize Higher Education: "MOOC", The Atlantic, May 11, 2012
The Forgotten Student: Has Higher Education Stiffed Its Most Important Client, The Atlantic, April 5, 2012
Why Are Your Neighbors Just Like You?, The Atlantic, March 21, 2012
Pin Up: How Pinterest Hooks the Aspiration Housewife in Us All, GOOD, March 5, 2012
Explaining Annette Lareau, or Why Parenting Styles Insure Inequality, The Atlantic, Februrary 16, 2012
Can My Kid Still Get Treatment? Why Autism's Definition Matters , The Atlantic, February 1, 2012
Locked in the Ivory Tower: Why JSTOR Imprisons Academic Research, The Atlantic, January 20, 2012