Much of the research on education policy in the Department of Public Administration and Policy (DPAP) focuses on the U.S. context, with substantial work on educational achievement and attainment gaps between students of different demographic and socioeconomic backgrounds.

Most, but not all, of this research uses quantitative and quasi-experimental methods to analyze large-scale administrative and survey datasets. In the K-12 setting, some of this research focuses on various aspects of the teacher labor market including measuring teacher effectiveness and diversity.

Other work focuses on accountability, equity and the sources and impacts of segregation within public schools.

Another common focus is on how out-of-school factors and student absences affect student success. Examples here include the impact of pollution and police shootings.

DPAP faculty also research topics in higher education, including factors that shape colleges and costs, postsecondary access, degree attainment and labor market outcomes.

To learn more about our research, consider reading these publications:

• “Teacher accountability reforms and the supply and quality of new teachers” by Matthew A. Kraft, Eric J. Brunner, Shaun M. Dougherty and David Schwegman.
• “Teacher Diversity and Student Success Why Racial Representation Matters in the Classroom” by Seth Gershenson, Michael Hansen and Constance A. Lindsay.
• “Who Benefits from Accountability-Driven School Closure? Evidence from New York City” by Robert Bifulco and David Schwegman.
• “Socioeconomic Segregation and School Choice in American Public Schools” by Dave Marcotte and Kari Dalane.
• “How Much Does Public School Facility Funding Depend on Property Wealth?” by Eric J. Brunner, David Schwegman and Jeffrey M. Vincent.
• “School Segregation and Racial Gaps in Special Education Identification” by Todd E. Elder, David N. Figlio, Scott A. Imberman and Claudia Persico.
• “The Segregation of Students by Income in Public Schools” by Kari Dalane and Dave Marcotte.
• “The short- and long-run impacts of secondary school absences” by Jing Liu, Monica Lee and Seth Gershenson.
• “JUE insight: From referrals to suspensions: New evidence on racial disparities in exclusionary discipline” by Jing Liu, Michael S. Hayes and Seth Gershenson.
• “Something in the air? Air quality and children's educational outcomes” by Dave Marcotte.
• “Police shootings, civic unrest and student achievement: evidence from Ferguson” by Seth Gershenson and Michael S Hayes.
• “Ties that bind? Family income dynamics and children’s post-secondary enrollment and persistence” by Bradley L. Hardy and Dave Marcotte.
• “Any press is good press? The unanticipated effects of Title IX investigations on university outcomes” by Jason M. Lindo, Dave Marcotte, Jane E. Palmer and Isaac D. Swensen.
• “The Returns to Education at Community Colleges: New Evidence from the Education Longitudinal Survey” by Dave Marcotte.
• “Will the Tide Lift All Boats? Examining the Equity Effects of Performance Funding Policies in U.S. Higher Education” by Nathan Favero & Amanda Rutherford.