I am an economic historian and labor economist at Grinnell College. In January 2026, I will be the Associate Professor of Economic and Social History at the University of Oxford, a Fellow of All Souls College, and an Associate Member of the Department of Economics. My research uses novel archival data, econometrics, and machine learning methods to address fundamental questions about historical labor market dynamics, inequality, and policy responses to economic crises.
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One strand of my research focuses on mass unemployment and labor market inequality, exploring how recessions shape economic disparities, how structural and technological change interact with cyclical downturns through labor reallocation across industries, and how policy responses mediate these effects. Much of this work is centered on the Great Depression and interwar period in Britain.
Another strand of my work focuses on labor market structures and wages, analyzing how labor market organization and worker power have changed over time, how factors beyond day wages such as job quality and career trajectories shape workers’ experiences, and how we can better measure wages to understand historical living standards.
I received my Ph.D. and Master's in economic history from the University of Oxford (Nuffield College) as a Marshall Scholar.
Before joining Grinnell in 2022, I worked as an economist in the U.S. federal government's Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), where I contributed to policy and research on the regulation of the US housing market. I also bring experience from the Bank of England and RAND Corporation. My undergraduate degree is from the University of Georgia.
Contact
Department of Economics
Grinnell College
1226 Park St
Grinnell, IA 50112
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