The Meet the Faculty section highlights a new member of the Public Management or Healthcare Administration faculty. This issue features Brenda J. Bond, Assistant Professor of Public Management and Aimee Williamson, Assistant Professor of Public Management.

Meet Brenda Bond

Where are you from?

I have grown up and attended school here in Massachusetts. I consider Massachusetts my home base, but I work wherever the interesting opportunities take me.

How did you find your way to Suffolk University?

Being from Massachusetts I knew of Suffolk University. I have been a practitioner working in the field, but in 2001, I returned to school to get my PhD.  I was interested in merging my practitioner experience with teaching and research. Because I have strong roots here in Massachusetts, I didn’t want to move. As I looked at regional opportunities, a position was posted here at Suffolk University in the Public Management Department. I talked to friends and colleagues who attended Suffolk’s Law and MPA programs. I did some homework on the school and its mission, and I applied. I feel fortunate to have landed a job here!

What classes are you teaching?

In the fall, I taught two sections of Public Sector Human Resource Management. This spring, I’m teching two sections of  Leadership Strategies for an Interconnected World.

How would you describe your teaching style?

I start by trying to understand what students want from the class. I see my job as bringing information about the content of the course to the discussion, but also try to figure out how this information is going to help the student.  In the Public Sector Human Resource Management, we are not just learning about what human resources management is, we sought to learn about the nature of human resources management as well as how we can use that knowledge to be better managers.

I design my classes around discussions. I want to know what the students think about the readings, not just whether they read the reading. I want to know how they can use this information. I also use the class as a way to teach skills like presentation skills, and how to run group discussions, among other things.

What is your research field?

I received my PhD in Social Policy from the Heller School for Social Policy and Management from Brandeis University.  My research focuses on how public safety organizations work to improve policing and community safety.  In many instances, that includes their own internal management policies or practices, and it increasingly involves working with public and private agencies. I currently direct two research grants.  The first is working with the City of Lowell and a number of partner agencies on implementing a community-wide strategy to reduce youth violence. An interesting example from this project is the work I am doing with the City Managers Gang Advisory Board. The Board consists of leaders of various organizations in the community, including the City Manager, the Chief of Police, Superintendents of Schools, the President of the Community College, the Director of the Greater Lowell Boys and Girls Club, and the Middlesex County District Attorney. This is a group of policy makers who are thinking about policy level issues in the city that either get in the way of or support positive youth development.  We are examining issues of violence, but more so issues of employment, education and public health.  We are also working on a strategic plan for the community and thinking about how to create a comprehensive system in the city to support youth and reduce youth violence. We are trying to work on a model there. A similar project is just beginning in the City of Springfield, Massachusetts.

I have also conducted research on organizational change in police and corrections agencies in various states. I am particularly interested in how public and nonprofit organizations change to adapt to the demands of their communities and their constituent groups. 

What is your professional background?

I have always worked in the area of community safety with most of my work centered on policing. Prior to completing my PhD, I worked in a number of agencies. I worked as Director of Research and Development for a police department and as Strategic and Resource Advisor for a regional association of police chiefs. I also have an extensive background in looking at community collaborative around community safety.  I ran a research and development department for a long time and have also done a lot of contract work with police agencies. I have also been working at the Harvard University John Kennedy School of Government, in the Program in Criminal Justice Policy and Management. With colleagues, we received a grant to begin research on comprehensive community approaches to youth violence.

IWhat makes you so passionate about what you do?

I accidentally fell into my current career.  I am a first generation college student and really went to college on a whim.  But, I was interested in criminal justice and I thought about becoming a juvenile probation officer. While in school, I worked for a university where I learned to write grants, something I had never planned on doing, but quickly learned was a good skill to have. From there, I went to work for a police department, again an unexpected career move. This happened at a time when there was a lot of innovation in policing and being a grant writer made this a great place to be. So, I fell into that work and have become passionate about the role that police can play in quality of coomunity life. I love to experiment with different kind of ideas and processes within public organizations that improve the safety communities. I love coming up with ideas about how we can do things better and how we can implement these ideas. I also want to know, “did that idea work?” 

What other activities does she like to do?

I spend a lot of time with my family. Most of my family is in Massachusetts and in New Hampshire.  I also like to travel and read. I like to read biographies, particularly those of scientists, as well as stories that have lessons in them. I have a fondness for Jane Austin books and I have read almost all of John Grisham’s books! I also like to stay in touch with the Brandeis community.  I like to cook, and I like to try new things!! I also like to eat.....Thai, Mexican food, anything, as long as it is cooked!

Have you travelled outside of the U.S.?

I have, but on pleasure. I have been to London a couple of times, and I have been to Paris once. I have also been to the Caribbean quite a bit, also Mexico and Canada.