Equalizing Educational Opportunity
Disparities in student opportunities and outcomes from kindergarten through higher education are shaped by a complex set of school, community, governance, and non-education sector factors. WEPC researchers evaluate the impact of policies and practices both within and outside of schools on student educational and life outcomes.
Latest Projects
Inequality in Household Adaptation to Schooling Shocks: COVID-19 Induced Online Learning Engagement in Real Time
Authors: Andrew Backer-Hicks, Joshua Goodman, & Christine Mulhern Project Summary In March of 2020, COVID-19 disrupted in-person education, causing both students and staff to abruptly switch to online learning models. The shift to virtual learning caused students to become reliant on technology, which raised equity concerns for lower income students who may not have access to a computer, high-speed internet, or parents with the time and training to oversee their learning. Andrew...
Oh Brother, Where Start Thou? Sibling Spillovers on College and Major Choice in Four Countries
Authors: Adam Altmejd, Andres Barrios Fernandez, Marin Drlje, Joshua Goodman, Michael Hurwitz, Dejan Kovac, Christine Mulhern, Christopher Neilson, & Jonathan Smith Project Summary A group of international collaborators, including Adam Altmejd, Andres Barrios-Fernandez, Marin Drlje, Joshua Goodman, Michael Hurwitz, Dejan Kovac, Christine Mulhern, Christopher Neilson, and Jonathan Smith, worked to identify the causal effect of one particular social connection: an older sibling who attends...
Regulatory Arbitrage in Teacher Hiring and Retention
Authors: Jesse M. Bruhn, Scott A. Imberman, & Marcus A. Winters Project Summary Charter schools typically have greater flexibility in their employment practices than do traditional public schools. However, it is not clear the extent to which charter schools capitalize on this comparative labor market flexibility to remove low value-added teachers or better retain high value-added teachers. Jesse Bruhn, Scott Imberman, and Marcus Winters use longitudinal administrative data from...