Highlighted Publications




 

Shakya (2026) asks whether participation in a pre-collegiate summer bridge program improves early college outcomes for economically disadvantaged and first-generation students. He analyzes student-level administrative data from a large U.S. public land-grant university, focusing on applicants to the Bridge Scholars Program between 2016 and 2022. Using a fuzzy regression discontinuity design based on a $16,000 Expected Family Contribution eligibility cutoff, he estimates causa

Postel (2026) asks how U.S. immigration policy has shaped the scale, composition, and socioeconomic outcomes of Asian immigration over time. She synthesizes historical census data, immigration records, and prior empirical studies covering the mid-1800s through 2019, focusing on major origin countries such as China, India, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, and Vietnam. She finds that policy shifts—especially the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act—produced dramatic population gr

Hahn, Hendren, Metcalfe, and Sprung-Keyser (2025) ask which climate policies generate the largest social welfare gains per dollar of government spending. They analyze evidence from 96 U.S. climate-related tax and spending policies evaluated using experimental or quasi-experimental methods over the past 25 years. Using the marginal value of public funds (MVPF) framework, they estimate each policy’s benefits relative to its fiscal cost. They find subsidies for clean electricity

Cordova-Ramos et al. (2026) examine how U.S. preterm birth rates vary over time by household income and whether racial and ethnic disparities persist across income groups. They analyze nationally representative Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) data covering 411,469 mother–infant dyads from 2011–2021. They find that preterm birth rates increased among households below 200% of the federal poverty level but remained stable among higher-income households. Overa