Curriculum Vitae

Education

Ph.D., Economics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, January, 1996

M.S., Economics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1992

B.A., Economics, Dickinson College, 1990

Employment History

Professor of Economics, Michigan State University, 2012-present

Visiting Scholar, School of Economics, University of New South Wales, 2011

Associate Professor of Economics, Michigan State University, 2005-2012

Associate Professor of Economics, Syracuse University, 2004-2005

Assistant Professor of Economics, Syracuse University, 1998-2004

Center for Policy Research Senior Research Associate, Syracuse University, 1998-2005

Visiting Assistant Professor of Economics, Syracuse University, 1997-1998

Assistant Professor of Economics, University of Kentucky, 1995-1998

Research Assistant, John Karl Scholz, University of Wisconsin, 1992-1995

Teaching Assistant, University of Wisconsin, 1991-1992

Professional Activities

Co-Editor, National Tax Journal, 2017-2022

MSU Department of Economics Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Matters, 2021-

 

Research Fields

Public Finance, Poverty, Labor, Demography

Published Papers


“Opioids and Organs: How Overdoses Affect the Supply of Donors, Waiting Lists, and Transplant Outcomes,” forthcoming with Todd Elder, Bethany Lemont and Keith Teltser, American Journal of Health Economics.

"Info.Econ: Increasing Diversity among Economics Majors" with Andrea Chambers, Carey Elder, Steven J. Haider, and Scott Imberman, May 2021, American Economic Association, Papers and Proceedings.  

“The Downs and Ups of the SNAP Caseload: What Matters?,” with Katie Fitzpatrick, Brian Stacy and Laura Tiehen, 2020, Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy.

“Allocating Scarce Organs: How a Change in Supply Affects Transplant Waiting Lists”, with Todd Elder and Keith Teltser, 2019, American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 11(4):210-239.

“Inference by College Admission Departments” with Mike Conlin, 2017, Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 141: 14-28.

“Voluntary Disclosure and the Strategic Behavior of Colleges,” with Michael Conlin, and Gabrielle Chapman. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, December, 2013.

“Applying Early Decision: Student and College Incentives and Outcomes.” with Gabrielle Chapman, Economics of Education Review. 31: 749-63, 2012.

“Donorcycles: Do Motorcycle Helmet Laws Reduce Organ Donations?” with Todd Elder and Brian Moore, Journal of Law and Economics, 54: 907-935, November 2011

“Suburban Legend: School Cutoff Dates and the Timing of Childbirth” with Todd Elder, Economics of Education Review, 29(5): 826-41, October 2010.

“The Deer Hunter: The Unintended Affects of Hunting Regulations”, with Mike Conlin and John Pepper, The Review of Economics and Statistics, 91(1): 178-187, February 2009

“The Earned Income Tax Credit and Fertility.” with Reagan Baughman, Journal of Population Economics. 22(3): 537-63. July, 2009.

“Utilization of Tax Credits for Low-Income Individuals,” with Katie Fitzpatrick and Andrew Hanson, Forum in National Tax Journal, 58: 743-85, December 2005

“The Effect of Alcohol Prohibition on Illicit Drug Related Crimes,” with Mike Conlin and John Pepper, Journal of Law and Economics, XLVIII (1): 215-234, April 2005.

“Marriage Penalties in Public Programs: Social Security's Child in Care Widow(er) Program,” with Mike Brien and David Weaver, National Tax Journal, 57: 829-46, December 2004.

“Widows Waiting to Wed: (Re)Marriage and Economic Incentives in Social Security Widow Benefits,” with Michael Brien and David Weaver, The Journal of Human Resources, 39(3):585-623, Summer 2004.

“Did Expanding the EITC Promote Motherhood?” with Reagan Baughman. American Economic Review Papers and Proceedings, 93(2): 247-250, May 2003.

“The Earned Income Tax Credit: Marriage and Cohabitation,” 2003. with Scott Houser and Yun Li. National Tax Journal Papers and Proceedings, Ninety-Fifth Annual Conference, 2002, 246-252.

“How Well Can We Track Cohabitation Using the SIPP? A Consideration of Direct and Inferred Measures,” with Reagan Baughman and Scott Houser, Demography, 39(3): 455-65, August 2002.

“EITC and Marriage,” with Scott Houser, National Tax Journal, 55(1): 25-40, March 2002.

“Slippery When Wet: The Effects of Local Alcohol Access Laws on Highway Safety,” with Reagan Baughman, Mike Conlin and John Pepper, Journal of Health Economics, 20(6):1089-1096, November 2001.

“Employee-Based versus Employer-Based Subsidies to Low-Wage Workers: A Public Finance Perspective,” with Doug Holtz-Eakin. In Finding Jobs: Work and Welfare Reform. Rebecca Blank and David Card, editors. Russell Sage Foundation: New York: 262-395, June 2000.

“Taxes and Transfers: Their Effect on the Decision to End a Marriage,” Journal of Public Economics, 73(2): 217-40, August 1999.

“Policy Watch: The Marriage Penalty,” with James Alm and Leslie A. Whittington, Journal of Economic Perspectives, 13(3): 193-204, Summer 1999.

“Taxes and the Timing of Births,” with Amitabh Chandra, Journal of Political Economy, 107(1): 161-177, February 1999.

“Taxes and Transfers: A New Look at the Marriage Penalty,” with Scott Houser, National Tax Journal, 51(2): 175-218, June 1998.

“Taxes and Transfers: Their Correlation with Marital Separation,” National Tax Journal Papers and Proceedings from the 89th Annual Conference on Taxation, pp. 299-305, 1996.

“The Earned Income Tax Credit and Transfer Programs: A Study of Labor Market and Program Participation,” with Scott Houser and John Karl Scholz. In Tax Policy and the Economy, Volume 9. James Poterba, editor. Cambridge: MIT Press: 1-50, April 1995.

“Taxes and the Poor: A Microsimulation Study of Implicit and Explicit Taxes,” with Scott Houser and John Karl Scholz, National Tax Journal, 47(3): 621-38, September 1994.

Books

Economic Inequality and Higher Education: Access Persistence and Success. Co-editor with Ross Rubenstein. Russell Sage Foundation, 2007.

Working Papers

“Opioids and Organs: How Overdoses Affect the Supply and Demand for Organ Transplants,” with Todd Elder, Bethany Lemont and Keith Teltser, 2021

"Credible Inference using Cell Phone Tracking Information" with Michael Conlin and Katherine Harris-Lagoudakis

“The Effect of Social Security Incentives on Divorce and Remarriage Behavior,” with Maggie Brehm and Cristian Meghea

“The Role of Advertising in Growth of the SNAP Caseload” with Laura Tiehen and Katie Fitzpatrick, 2014

Other Papers

“Evidence of the Effect of Taxes on the Dividend Policy of Employee Stock Ownership Plans,” July 1999.

“The Value of Marriage: Love at What Price?” with Mike Conlin and Melissa Koenig, 2005

Grants

“SNAP Caseload Dynamics: An Examination of SNAP Policy and Economic Conditions Across States and Over Time” USDA, 2013.

“The Role of Information in the Size and Composition of the SNAP Caseload”, $17,500, National Poverty Center, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan, 2010

“Economic Inequality and Higher Education.” (Co-principal investigator with Ross Rubenstein) Russell Sage Foundation, $43,000 grant for conference and volume, 2005-2006.

“The Value of Marriage.” (joint with Michael Conlin) $39,342, funded by the Boston College Retirement Research Consortium (SSA), September 29, 2002- September 28, 2003.

“New York State Tax Commission.” $99,788, funded by the New York State Assembly, June 1, 2002-May 31, 2003.

“The Effect of Social Security on the Timing of Divorce and Remarriage Behavior.” $30,367, funded by the Boston College Retirement Research Consortium (SSA), September 29, 2001- September 28, 2002.

“Young Widow(er)s, Children, and Social Security Marriage Penalties.” $35,078, funded by the Boston College Retirement Research Consortium (SSA), October 1, 2000 - September 30, 2001.

Summer Project Assistantships. $1000, Center for Policy Research, Syracuse University, Summer 2001, 2002 and 2003.

Appleby Mosher Fund. $1000, Maxwell School, Syracuse University, Summer 2000, 2002 and 2003.

“Marriage, Divorce and Social Security.” $12,726, Pilot Projects in Aging Research from the Center for Demography and Economics of Aging housed in the Center for Policy Research, The Maxwell School, Syracuse University, February 1999-June 1999.

“Living Arrangements of the Poor: Marriage and Cohabitation Penalties in the Transfer and Tax Systems.” $18,054, from the Joint Center for Poverty Research, Small Grants Program, July 1997-May 1998.

Professional Activities

Member: 

American Economic Association, National Tax Association, Population Association of America, Committee for the Status of Women in the Economics Profession

Referee:

American Economic Review, B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis and Policy, Canadian Journal of Economics, Demography, Economic Inquiry, Economics of Education Review, Growth and Change, Journal of Human Resources, Journal of Labor Economics, Journal of Policy and Management Studies, Journal of Political Economy, Journal of Population Economics, Journal of Public Economics, National Tax Journal, Public Finance Review, Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Southern Economics Journal, National Science Foundation, United States Department of Agriculture.

Program Committee:

National Tax Association Meetings, November 1998, 1999, 2001, 2006, 2012

Southern Economic Association, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018

Board Member:

National Tax Association, 2003-2006.

Editorial Board

National Tax Journal, 2004-2017


Teaching Experience

Undergraduate: Introductory Microeconomics, Intermediate Microeconomics, Public Finance

Graduate: Public Finance (Master’s Level), Public Expenditure (PhD Level)


Awards and Honors