Juliane Krueger, lecturer for the Department of Political Science was honored with the Robert Durr Award from the Midwest Political Science Association (MPSA). Krueger had the best paper for applying quantitative methods to a substantive problem. Her paper is titled, "An Exploration of Multipe Systems Estimation for Empirical Reserach with Violent Deaths". She is part of the Human Rights Data Analysis Group and shares the award with Kristian Lum from Virginia Tech. 

The Award Committee consisted of D. Sunshine Hillygus, Duke University (Chair), Monique Lyle, University of South Carolina, John Transue, University of Illinois Springfield Committee Commendation. The committee noted that previous empirical research on political violence has been hindered by inaccurate death count statistics. Directly addressing this measurement challenge, Kruger and Lum offer a compelling validation of the multiple systems estimation approach to estimating violent deaths in Kosovo, with important implications for future human rights research and policy-making.