On Oct. 8, 2024, Dr. Danielle Allen was announced as the 2024 recipient of the Joseph B. and Toby Gittler Prize, which includes a $25,000 cash award and a medal. Dr. Allen is a respected political philosopher, professor, and former candidate for governor of Massachusetts. As part of the Gittler Prize program hosted by COMPACT, Allen completed an on-campus residency, including a public lecture titled “Bringing Democracy Back from the Brink: A Strategic Vision and Call to Action,” hosted by Dr. Amber Spry. Dr. Allen’s research on democratic health has shaped policy and influenced global democratic thought. During her lecture, she discussed how civic engagement, personal experiences, and academics have driven her political science career. Coming from a politically engaged family, Dr. Allen spoke about democracy’s challenges from her personal perspective. “Danielle Allen’s profoundly important work in support of democracy and greater participation in American democracy by those who have been marginalized in democratic processes will create much excitement on campus, while reinforcing campus democracy and voting initiatives in the lead-up to the November elections,” said former Brandeis President Ron Liebowitz. At the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation and throughout her career, Dr. Allen has focused on strategies to strengthen American democracy by “improving institutions, building interpersonal and informational trust, and reducing hyper-partisan affective polarization through research and field-building,” according to the Allen Lab. She has received several prestigious awards, including the Kluge Prize for Achievement in the Study of Humanity from the Library of Congress. Dr. Allen was formerly on the faculty at the University of Chicago and currently teaches at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. Born in Takoma Park, Maryland, to political scientist William B. Allen, Dr. Allen graduated summa cum laude from Princeton University in 1993, received a Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Cambridge, and later earned a Master of Arts and a Ph.D. in government from Harvard University, where she was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2001. Dr. Allen also ran for Massachusetts governor in the 2022 election, announcing her candidacy in June 2021. She withdrew in early 2022, citing challenges for new candidates, and said, “In Massachusetts, where we pride ourselves on being the birthplace of democracy, there is no excuse for ballot access procedures that push out qualified but non-traditional candidates and rob the people of Massachusetts of real choice on their ballot” (The Harvard Crimson).