Ryan LaRochelle

Traces the history of the Office of Economic Opportunity/Community Services Administration, focusing on Richard Nixon’s failed attempt to dismantle it in 1973 and Ronald Reagan’s successful effort in 1981. Focuses on the long-term opposition against OEO/CSA to provide new insights into how conservatives articulated an alternative ideology to postwar liberalism.

Analyzes how conservatism has affected American state development by tracing the history of how block-granting transformed from a bipartisan tool to solve problems of public administration in the 1940s into a mechanism to roll back and decentralize the welfare state that had reached its zenith in the 1960s.

Reassessed the early history of the Community Action Program. Draws on an original dataset of 98 community action agencies. Argues that the program was a bold experiment in administrative reform that launched a range of diverse anti-poverty initiatives that were tailored to local circumstance and community needs.

Examines the rise of block-granting as a tool of social policy retrenchment since the 1980s. Shows how several aspects of block grants' designs leave them vulnerable to deferred policy maintenance, which leads to gradual erosion. Argues that block grant design limits the potential for self-reinforcing or positive feedbacks, thus making these programs vulnerable to further retrenchment. Shows how the decentralized nature of block grants works to increase inequality across the states.