KSG Prof Joins Rappaport

David Luberoff, associate director of the Kennedy School of Government’s (KSG) Taubman Center for State and Local Government, has been appointed executive director of the Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston, a center focusing on public works and development.

As of June 1, Luberoff will leave teaching to devote himself to his new position at the KSG institute, which was founded in 2000.

Luberoff said he was excited about the appointment.

“Very few jobs would entice me to leave the Taubman Center, and this position at the Rappaport Institute is one of them because the work is fun, important, and interesting,” he said.

Luberoff said that the job would take him back to his roots.

“I started as a reporter in Boston and it’s great to have the chance to return to my local level focus after years of thinking at the national level,” he explained.

Luberoff has focused much of his work on transportation and large-scale investment projects, such as the Big-Dig, a plan proposed to alleviate Boston’s transportation difficulties.

“These are decisions that are big, complicated, and important, even if some people think they’re boring,” he said. “Deciding how we should spend billions of dollars on transportation, waste removal, environmental protection—these are the types of things that the Rappaport Institute deals with.”

The Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston coordinates a broad agenda of research, training and public service, focusing on the major issues facing the state and region. The Institute is primarily funded by a multi-year grant from the Jerome Lyle Rappaport Charitable Foundation, whose namesake has been a prominent Boston civic and business leader for the past half century.

Though the appointment only took place recently, Luberoff said he already has two distinct goals for the future. “First, I’d like to improve the quality of the discussions that the Rappaport Institute facilitates. It’s important that we’re discussing the right issues and also bringing in additional information,” he said.  “Academics and policy-makers need to work together—it’s a two-way dialogue.”

Luberoff said that his second goal is to encourage undergraduates and graduates to enter the public sector.

“This gets them engaged in public service, helps them to understand how the government works, and allows for better decisions to be made.”

Some of Luberoff’s most recent work includes a study of the relationship between gay populations and economic growth.

In a November 2003 editorial in the Boston Herald, Luberoff argued that the legalization of gay marriage in Massachusetts, set to take effect on Monday, could generate an economic boom in the Bay State.

“More tolerant areas tend to attract more diverse, innovative types of people who are willing to think outside the box,” he said. “Data has shown that areas with disproportionately high populations of homosexuals have attracted these more innovative workers and companies. Boston already has this reputation and I think this decision will only underscore it.”

Alan Altshuler, the faculty director of the Rappaport Institute and the director of the Taubman Center, has worked with Luberoff in the past and has nothing but praise for him.

“David is well qualified for this position because he combines a deep understanding of the university with a strong commitment to the civic and public sectors,” he said. “Besides being an extremely gifted academic and scholar, he also has the presence and popularity needed.”

Altschuler said that Luberoff was a good fit for the young center, only four years old.

“I think David has the energy, drive, and ideas to take it to the next level,” he said.

The center’s former director, Charles C. Euchner, resigned earlier this year to focus on his writing.

Luberoff commended his predecessor.

“I respect him as a colleague and like him as a friend. He has done a wonderful job establishing the Institute out of just an idea only four years ago and I’m lucky enough to be able to build upon his foundation,” he said. “Hopefully I’ll have half as much fun as he did.”