Research
My research is primarily focused on the development and deployment of human capital in the context of public education. However, I am broadly interested in how individuals and institutions build and use productive skills. I believe a nation's greatest resource is its people and that public education is the foundation of developing that resource. My current research projects are related to adult basic education, immigrant language skills, high school equivalency credentialing, career and technical education, college access, and teacher labor markets.
I am the Co-PI of the Massachusetts English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Impact Study in partnership with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. My Co-PI, Kirsten Slungaard Mumma, and I designed this study to assess the generalizability of our paper titled "Immigrant Integration in the United States: The Role of Adult English Language Training," which leverages the randomized enrollment process of the largest adult ESOL program in Massachusetts to assess the impact of adult ESOL services on measures of immigrant integration, including civic engagement and reported earnings. Our first cohort of partner ESOL programs transitioned from first-come-first-served enrollment policies to randomized enrollment processes in the 2019-2020 school year.
If you want to know more, check out my recent working papers and publications, send me an email, or download my current CV.