IOC Doctoral Research Fellow Luisa Godinez Puig Selected as Equity Scholar at Urban Institute

Congratulations to Luisa Godinez Puig (GRS ‘21) for being selected as an Equity Scholar at the Urban Institute! In this role, she will work with the Urban Institute’s Office of Race and Equity Research and Racial Equity Analytics Lab to produce policy-oriented research on structural racism and share her insight with decision makers. Luisa was selected for this two-year program along with seven other accomplished scholars from across the country.

A BU Political Science doctoral candidate, Luisa is expected to complete her PhD at BU in Fall 2021. During her time at BU, Luisa served as a Doctoral Research Fellow with the IOC, where she contributed to the 2019 and 2020 Menino Survey of Mayors and published a policy report, “Perceptions of Public Health Priorities and Accountability among U.S. Mayors.”

“I look forward to continuing my research on issues of racial equity within a leading organization that is dedicated to developing evidence-based research. I am extremely honored to have been selected among such an impressive group of people, with whom I am excited to collaborate. It is also the opportunity for me to further my research in a more policy-oriented environment. I was able to start this type of work at the IOC and now I will be able to continue at the Urban Institute. This truly combines all my passions: research, policy work, urban politics, work on racial equity, and a focus on improving people’s lives,” said Luisa.

In addition to her work as an IOC Doctoral Research Fellow, Luisa also received a 2018 Early Stage Urban Research Award from the IOC for her project, Cities in the Realm of State Preemption Laws. “The seed grant I received was crucial in allowing me to conduct my dissertation research. These opportunities combined were key elements of my application at the Urban Institute,” she said.

Luisa said she has spent the past five years developing a keen interest in urban issues because she believes local governments have a unique position to influence citizen’s daily lives. She looks forward to this opportunity to develop research on structural racism and hopes her work with the Equity Scholars program can be applied to real-world impacts.