Harris School

Harris School may refer to:

The Harris School (Texas)

The Harris School is a non-profit private prekindergarten through eighth grade school in Houston, Texas. The school serves children whose mental, emotional or behavioral challenges make it impossible for them to continue in their current academic setting. The Harris School provides a therapeutic program focused on mental health balanced with academics.

History

The Harris School was established in 1987 as a therapeutic preschool, founded by a small group of child therapists and psychoanalysts who believed that early intervention was the key to successfully treating mental health issues in children. The school opened its doors in the Montrose area 1997, named after one of its founders Hunter P. Harris, M.D. The school quickly evolved into serving Prekindergarten through 8th grade. In 2007, The Harris School became accredited through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The school moved to it current location in Southwest Houston in 2013.

Student body

The school serves approximately 40 students each year. Parents seek the help of The Harris School when their children’s normal courses of development are interrupted by anxiety, depression, trauma, or diagnosed attention, sensory or behavioral disorders (such as ADD, ODD, Tourette Syndrome or Asperger’s Syndrome). These interruptions can sometimes result in inappropriate behaviors which mask the child’s ultimate potential, and make it impossible to succeed in a mainstream, traditional classroom. Susan Spencer, the principal, said in 2007 that even though the typical student may have above average to high intelligence, he or she is unable to succeed in a traditional school because he or she had emotional or social developmental delays or problems. Spencer added that "We see children who have a huge gap between their age and their emotional development, but with high IQ's. Their emotional problems interfere with their potential."[2]

Public policy

Public policy is the principled guide to action taken by the administrative executive branches of the state with regard to a class of issues in a manner consistent with law and institutional customs. The foundation of public policy is composed of national constitutional laws and regulations. Further substrates include both judicial interpretations and regulations which are generally authorized by legislation. Public policy is considered strong when it solves problems efficiently and effectively, serves justice, supports governmental institutions and policies, and encourages active citizenship.

Other scholars define it as a system of "courses of action, regulatory measures, laws, and funding priorities concerning a given topic promulgated by a governmental entity or its representatives." Public policy is commonly embodied in "constitutions, legislative acts, and judicial decisions."

In the United States, this concept refers not only to the result of policies, but more broadly to the decision-making and analysis of governmental decisions. As an academic discipline, public policy is studied by professors and students at public policy schools of major universities throughout the country. The U.S. professional association of public policy practitioners, researchers, scholars, and students is the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.

Harris School of Public Policy

The University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy is the public policy school of the University of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It is ranked in the top five policy analysis schools in the United States. It is located on the University's main campus in Hyde Park. In addition to policy studies and policy analysis, the school requires its students to pursue training in economics and statistics through preliminary examinations and course requirements. Further, the Harris School is known for its curricular interactions with the University-at-large, with students drawing upon the offerings of the Booth School of Business, Law School, School of Social Service Administration, and the Graduate Division of the Social Sciences.

Curriculum

The Harris School offers the following full-time professional master's degree programs:

Policy studies

Policy studies is the combination of policy analysis and program evaluation. It "involves systematically studying the nature, causes, and effects of alternative public policies, with particular emphasis on determining the policies that will achieve given goals."

Policy Studies also examines the conflicts and conflict resolution that arise from the making of policies in civil society, the private sector, or more commonly, in the public sector (e.g. government).

It is frequently focused on the public sector but is equally applicable to other kinds of organizations (e.g., the not-for-profit sector). Some policy study experts graduate from public policy schools with public policy degrees. Alternatively, experts may have backgrounds in policy analysis, program evaluation, sociology, psychology, philosophy, economics, anthropology, geography, law, political science, social work, environmental planning and public administration.

Traditionally, the field of policy studies focused on domestic policy, with the notable exceptions of foreign and defense policies. However, the wave of economic globalization, which ensued in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, created a need for a subset of policy studies that focuses on global governance, especially as it relates to issues that transcend national borders such as climate change, terrorism, nuclear proliferation, and economic development. This subset of policy studies, which is often referred to as international policy studies, typically requires mastery of a second language and attention to cross-cultural issues in order to address national and cultural biases. For example, the Monterey Institute of International Studies at Middlebury College offers Master of Arts programs that focus exclusively on international policy through a mix of interdisciplinary and cross-cultural analysis called the "Monterey Way".