Research Affiliates

Dr. Chris Benner is an Associate Professor of Community and Regional Development, and Chair of the Geography Graduate Group at the University of California, Davis.  His research focuses on the relationships between technological change, regional development, and the structure of economic opportunity, focusing on regional labor markets and the transformation of work and employment patterns. 

Scott Carrell received his degree in Economics from the University of Florida in 2003. His research focuses on the effect of school inputs, peer effects, and barriers to college.

Katherine Conger received her degree in Sociology from Iowa State University in 1993. Her research focuses on the quality and course of sibling relationships; interpersonal processes in families emphasizing the linkages between family stress and adolescent adjustment; and observational research methods.

Peter Franks received his M.D. degree from the University of London, England. His research focuses on research design and methodology in primary care, psychosocial and socioeconomic factors affecting health, and health status measurement.

Erin Hamilton received her degree in Sociology from the University of Texas, Austin in 2009. Her current research investigates the social and demographic sources of international migration from Mexico to the United States.

Cassandra Hart earned her degree in Human Development and Social Policy from Northwestern University in 2011. Her research focuses on state and national education policies, and school-choice policies and their effects on student outcomes. 

Robert Huckfeldt received his degree from Washington University in 1977. His primary research interests lie in participation, communication, and decision-making.

Kevin Johnson received his J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1983. His research interests include immigration law and policy, refugee law, civil rights, and the Critical Race and Latina/o theories.

Michal Kurlaender received her degree in Education Policy from Harvard University in 2005. Her work focuses on education policy and evaluation, particularly, practices that address existing racial/ethnic and socioeconomic inequality at various stages of the educational attainment process.

Peter Lindert’s current research focuses on the causes and effects of modern fiscal redistribution and the history of inequality, political voice and economic growth.

Jonathan K. London received his degree in Environmental Science Policy and Management from UC Berkeley in 2011. His research addresses conflicts and collaboration in natural resource and environmental issues, specifically on marginalized rural communities and environmental justice issues in the Sierra Nevada and the Central Valley.

Bill McCarthy received his degree from the University of Toronto. His research focuses on: health, crime and delinquency, and research methods.

Deb Niemeier received her degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Washington in 1994. Her research focuses on the impact of low income families’ access to transport on jobs, healthcare, and schools.

Marianne Page received her Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in 1995.  Her poverty related research focuses on intergenerational mobility and the impact of social programs on children’s outcomes. 

Lisa Pruitt received her degree from the University of London in 1997. Her areas of research include legal and policy implications of income inequality along the rural-urban continuum and legal aspects of declining mobility, with an emphasis on diminishing access to higher education.

Heather Rose received her degree in Economics from UC San Diego in 2001. Her research areas include the effects of school finance systems, accountability programs, and governance structures on the distribution of school resources, student outcomes and achievement gaps.

Kimberlee Shauman received her degree in Sociology, Population Demography and Ecology from the University of Michigan in 1997. Her areas of expertise include social stratification, family and kinship, demography, sociology of education, and quantitative methodology. 

Ross A. Thompson received his degree in Psychology from the University of Michigan in 1981. His research focuses on the applications of developmental research to public policy concerns, including school readiness and its development, early childhood investments, and early mental health.

Professor Ventry is a graduate of UC Los Angeles (B.A., History), UC Santa Barbara (Ph.D., Economic and Legal History), and New York University School of Law (J.D.). He is the author of dozens of articles, book chapters, and an edited volume. His research interests include tax policy, tax theory and history, family taxation, legal ethics and professional standards, tax administration and compliance, distributive justice, and public finance.