"The Value of Rural and Urban Public Infrastructure"
with David Albouy, Economic Development Quarterly , July 2022, Vol. 36(3), 177-192 [paper]
"Productivity and Quality of Life Benefits to Rural Infrastructure"
with David Albouy and Arash Farahani, Issue Reports No. 277657, 2018, Farm Foundation. [report]
"The Effects of Improving a Local Amenity on Housing Markets and Neighborhoods: Evidence from Chicago" -R&R at Regional Science and Urban Economics [SSRN]
Sole Author
"The Long-Run Effects of Interstate Highways on Migration and Labor Market Outcomes in Rural America"- Submitted
with John Anders, Craig Wesley Carpenter, Marcus Bernard, Trey Malone
This paper directly measures the impact of highway construction on those born into rural America to understand the extent to which highway infrastructure influences rural economic opportunity and social mobility. By instrumenting highway construction with the original federal highway plan and restricting the sample to non-metropolitan counties, our estimates essentially identify highway impacts on persons born into rural America by comparing birth counties which happened to fall between metropolitan transportation hubs on the planned highway grid to those that did not. We find that highways benefited those born into rural America, in terms of higher income, lowered unemployment, and higher educational attainment, but did so through shifting the composition of individuals born in these areas out of agriculture and by increasing migration for individuals who continued working in an agricultural industry. Non-agricultural workers also saw improved labor market outcomes, but not via increased migration. We thus show that highways benefited labor market outcomes for rural Americans, but that the mechanisms for these positive effects differed by industry.
"The Long-Run Effects of Tribal Colleges and Universities on Educational and Labor Market Outcomes" - Submitted
with Craig Wesley Carpenter, John Anders, Marty Matlock, Marcus Bernard, Trey Malone
This article examines the long-run effects of Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) on the educational and labor market outcomes of American Indians and Alaskan Native (AIAN) individuals, utilizing data from the restricted individual-level 2000 Decennial Census and the 2005-2019 American Community Surveys (ACS), linked to the Social Security Administration’s Numident file which allows us to directly observe both respondents' birth counties and later-life outcomes. Using a difference-in-differences framework that leverages the establishment of TCUs between 1968 and 1993, we analyze impacts based on individuals’ age at TCU opening. Our findings indicate that TCUs increased educational attainment among AIAN individuals by about 0.5 years, but without significant gains in degree completion and labor market outcomes. These results suggest that while TCUs enhance educational access, the lack of degree completion may limit their effects on labor market outcomes. This study provides the first quantitative analysis of the causal impacts of TCUs on individuals' long-run socioeconomic outcomes, with broader implications for minority-serving institutions.
"The Long-Run Impact of Local College Access: How Colleges Shaped American Communities" - Draft coming soon
with John Anders, Craig Wesley Carpenter, Marcus Bernard, Trey Malone
This article leverages the restricted individual-level 2000 Decennial Census and the 2005-2019 American Community Surveys (ACS), linked to the Social Security Administration’s Numident file, to identify the long-run effects of local college openings on individuals’ educational attainment, labor market outcomes, and migration decisions. By linking respondents’ birth county information to the location and timing of college openings between 1943 and 1983, relative to individual age at the time of the opening, we apply difference-in-differences approach to estimate birth-cohort community-level impacts. Our results indicate that local college openings enhance individuals’ educational attainment, some college education, and associate degree completion. This improvement subsequently increases labor market participation, income, and lifespan. These effects are driven by 2-year institutions, including those in rural areas.
"Freeway Removal and Neighborhood Changes - Evidence from the California Bay Area" - Draft coming soon
Sole Author
This study examines three freeway removal cases in the California Bay Area to assess the impacts of freeway removal on housing prices and demographic characteristics in urban areas. Sections of the three freeways were removed following an earthquake. Using synthetic control methods, I evaluate the causal effects of freeway removal on socioeconomic outcomes, such as property values and population demographics. Key findings reveal that, within the pocket area of the Cypress Freeway, housing prices increased, suggesting the significance of barrier removal effects after freeway removal. In the case of the Embarcadero Freeway, population growth was observed along the oceanfront, indicating the importance of unlocking oceanfront access to facilitate an amenity effect. Meanwhile, the Central Freeway neighborhood did not experience higher housing price but did experience changes in demographic composition.
"Valuing Local Infrastructure Investment: Evidence from Awardees and Rejected Applications for Transportation Grant Programs"
with Seung-Hyun Hong
"Is the US Becoming More Tolerant Towards Minorities? - Evidence from the Tipping Model"
with Eduardo Medina-Cortina