Research
Published Papers
Are Employers Omniscient? Asymmetric Learning About Cognitive and Non-Cognitive Skills, Industrial Relations, July 2018.
Abstract: Do employers recognize non-cognitive skills at the beginning of a career or is there a learning process? How does learning about these skills occur over time? Does learning transfer perfectly across employers or is there a degree to which learning resets as employees change jobs throughout their careers? This paper uses data from the NLSY79 to incorporate measures of non-cognitive skills into a model of symmetric employer learning described originally by Altonji and Pierret (2001) and nested in a model of asymmetric employer learning as in Schonberg (2007). I find evidence that employers reward self esteem, internal control and schooling initially while rewarding cognitive skills and motivation over time. Published Version
Contributions of Skills to the Racial Wage Gap, Journal of Human Capital, September 2019.
Abstract: Analyzing the distributions of wages, cognitive, and non-cognitive skills for white, black, and Hispanic men reveals differences throughout these distributions. I use data from the NLSY79 and unconditional quantile (Firpo, Fortin, and Lemieux, 2010) Oaxaca-Blinder decompositions to decompose observed wage gaps throughout the distribution into portions explained by cognitive and non-cognitive skills. Non-cognitive skills explain 2-4% of the wage gap between blacks and whites and 9-25% of the wage gap throughout the distribution between Hispanics and white; whereas, cognitive skills explain 8-70% and 24-90%, respectively. Between blacks and Hispanics, non-cognitive skills explain 5-10% and cognitive skills 9-24%. Published Version Online Appendix
Working Papers
Funding, Investment and Wealth Equalization Across Texas Public School Districts with Parth Venkat, under review.
Abstract: We study how school districts respond to funding changes under a wealth equalization policy, using an instrument to exogenously identify funding changes. We find that property-rich districts reduce their tax rates and issue debt for capital expenditures after the state recaptures some of their funding with the intent to redistribute it to property-poor districts. In contrast, when property-poor districts receive additional funding, this spending correlates with investments, such as employing more and better teachers. These results imply that properly recaptured and redistributed funds may increase quality in property-poor districts
Community College Decision Making in the Wake of the Great Recession, under review.
Abstract: The Great Recession brought about large changes in layoffs and other indicators of economic success. Because the opportunity cost of foregone earnings decreased as a result, it is possible that investments in human capital changed. How did community college students respond to the Great Recession? Using data from the California Community College Chancellor's Office, I investigate student responses to the Great Recession by exploiting geographic variation in the depth of the recession as measured by changes in the layoff rate. Findings suggest large impacts of the Great Recession on student enrollment in community college across races, ages, and genders. In addition, students increased the number of credits pursued in a given term, and colleges saw an influx of first time and returning students. In particular, a one percentage point increase in the layoff rate during the Great Recession corresponds with a 3.4 to 3.5% increase in community college enrollment. These results suggest that the recession increased demand for community college, even though the supply was likely decreasing during this time.
Work in Progress
Understanding College Student Responses to Shocks: Evidence from Texas
Can Smaller Classes Reduce Racial Achievement Gaps? Lessons from the LAUSD Desegregation Plan with Ashley Harlow and Emily Penner.
“Community Based Fitness and Health Outcomes” with Anahita Kodali.
“The Spillover Effects of Access to Healthcare: Evidence from the Medicaid Expansion” with Claire Kardesch, Elizabeth Laurencio, Lily Steckel, and Sarah Wolfolds.
“Investment in Higher Quality PE Teachers” with Helen Liu and Naomi Valdez.
“Impact of Wildfires on Student Outcomes” with Patrick Gillis and Grace Lu.
“Technology and Student Outcomes: Evidence from Technology Grants” with Yizhen Zhen and Jason Luo.