With college basketball season in full swing and March Madness close approaching, the attention of the sports world is centered around student athletes. Yet despite the press brought to universities by these sports, they are rarely mentioned in the mission statement or acknowledged to be as influential as they are. On this episode of Policy 360, Charles Clotfelter discusses the tremendous impact college athletics has on students, alumni, and beyond, for better or for worse, as well as what can be done to reform how schools treat the business of sports as a core part of their identity. Charles Clotfelter is a professor at the Sanford School of Public Policy and author of the book Big-Time Sports in American Universities. (Cambridge University Press).

In 1995, John Koskinen was deputy director of the federal Office of Management and Budget. President President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, was tussling with a Republican Congress over a variety of issues. Soon the government was in the midst of its first major shutdown.

Koskinen joins Sanford School of Public Policy Dean Judith Kelley to discuss lessons from that shutdown. They also talk about accomplishments and challenges Koskinen faced during his career spanning 11 different public leadership positions in the public and private sectors.

Music: Blue Dot Sessions/Creative Commons

Rich countries have a variety of reasons to give money to poorer countries. In this episode of Policy 360, Sarah Bermeo discusses what the U.S. foreign aid policy strategy is today, how it has changed over the years, and what that means for peace and security.  Sarah Blodgett Bermeo is an associate professor at the Sanford School of Public Policy and author of the book Targeted Development: Industrialized Country Strategy in a Globalizing World.