Meet our Faculty Affiliate: Leah Rosenstiel

Members of the Center for Effective Lawmaking are excited to introduce one of our newest Faculty Affiliates,  Leah Rosenstiel. She is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Vanderbilt University. Previously,  she worked as a research assistant on K-12 education policy at the Congressional Research Service.

Professor Rosenstiel’s teaching and research are primarily centered around American political institutions, seeking to understand how the structures of political institutions shape outcomes. Specifically, she concentrates on the disconnect between public policy goals and their effective implementation. Through her courses, she hopes to educate young Americans on the importance of designing effective policy-making institutions and strategies.

Since starting her role at Vanderbilt, Professor Rosenstiel has undertaken numerous research projects. Her book project examines how the congressional bargaining process shapes, and at times distorts, federal grant programs. In 2020, she published a journal article in the American Political Science Review titled “Measuring the Influence of Political Actors on the Federal Budget.” This paper highlights the consequences of using funding versus spending measures in understanding the federal budget. Her research indicates that spending outcomes serve as a poor metric for measuring budgetary goals and outcomes. Some of her other working papers include “Congressional Bargaining and Distribution of Grants,” “The Distributive Politics of Grants-in-Aid,” and “The Politicization of Congressional Capacity.” These projects offer insight into the relationships between Congressional effectiveness and influencing factors such as budgetary politics, funding distribution, and political polarization.

The CEL is grateful to have Professor Rosenstiel as part of the team and look forward to her future collaborations with us.