I am an Associate Professor within the Department of Public Administration and Policy in the School of Public Affairs at American University and nonresident senior fellow in Economic Studies at the Brookings Institution. I am also a visiting scholar with the Center for Household Financial Stability at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. During the 2018-2019 academic year, I am on leave to the Russell Sage Foundation.

My research interests lie within labor and applied microeconomics, with an emphasis on economic instability, intergenerational mobility, poverty, and young adult socio-economic outcomes.

I am also interested in the changing role and impact of government tax and transfer programs on a range of socio-economic outcomes, including poverty, income instability and intergenerational mobility.

At American, I teach courses on microeconomics and social policy.  I am a member of the National Academy of Social Insurance, and I serve on the executive board of the Society of Government Economists, as well as the editorial boards of the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management and the Review of Black Political Economy.

Please see my CV for a full listing of activities and the Research section for access to publications and working papers.