Student Profile: Grace Finley, MPP Class of 2023

Grace Finley long sought a career where she could make an impact and serve with passion. She left her hometown of Cleveland, Ohio, to double major in dance and American studies at Connecticut College. “I designed my own interdisciplinary course of study, and I suspect that foreshadowed my interest in exploring systems-level problems from multiple perspectives,” she said. 

While at Connecticut College, Finley also became a scholar with the Holleran Center for Community Action and Public Policy . “I worked on an interdisciplinary project looking at in-school instruction as a means of addressing out-of-school factors. Through this opportunity, I discovered a passion for thinking about innovative ways to address challenges in public education and related issues.”

The summer before her final year of college, Finley interned at District of Columbia Public Schools’ central office, where she helped develop a summer school curriculum addressing truancy. Once again, the interdisciplinary quality of her undergraduate studies carried over to her passions for education and child welfare. “Many forces interact to inform student outcomes: you can’t just look at one aspect of a child’s life when thinking about possible interventions. By graduation, I knew I wanted to work in a setting where I can think holistically about the interaction of different systems and work directly with the people impacted by those systems.”

After spending her post-undergraduate years exploring a wide range of possible career paths, Finley moved to Chicago in early 2020 in advance of attending the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice in the fall. Prior to her coursework starting, she secured two research opportunities: an assistantship at the Chicago Center for Youth Violence Prevention (CCYVP) and another at the Chapin Hall Center for Children. “These experiences solidified my excitement for policy, child welfare, and reinforced the importance of intersectional and interdisciplinary approaches to complex social problems. When you're talking about children, you can't just talk about the welfare system. You have to talk about schools, families, the home, and the community context. If we can change our systems to serve children better, I really believe that we can transform society as a whole.”

This summer, Finley is also interning full-time with Child Focus, a D.C. consulting firm that works in child welfare at the intersection of research and policy.

So, what spurred Finley to pursue the Master of Public Policy dual degree at Harris in addition to her coursework at the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice?  “It was largely because of my work and colleagues—many of whom were Harris alumni—at Chapin Hall. One major aspect of my assistantship is reviewing manuscripts submitted to the Journal of Child and Family Studies, where I often encounter studies that contain heavily quantitative methods that, frankly, go right over my head. Having the quantitative skills that Harris is uniquely known for will make me a better policymaker.”

Finley said she is excited to dive into subjects at Harris that will bring something entirely different to the table than her social work master’s program, including quantitative and application-based courses. She also intends to join the student organization Harris Community Action to work collaboratively with community partners to solve real-world problems. “There’s no better way to gain policy experience than by learning from Southside community organizations who are doing the important work I hope to join after graduating Harris."