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Jordan Matsudaira Professor Public Administration and Policy

Additional Positions at AU
Professor
Director of the PEER Center
Degrees
Ph.D. Economics and Public Policy, University of Michigan

Bio
Jordan Matsudaira is a Professor at the School of Public Affairs at American University. He is also a Nonresident Fellow at the Urban Institute in Washington, DC and a Visiting Scholar at the Federal Reserve Banks of Chicago and Philadelphia. His research focuses on using government administrative data to understand the causal impact of education and labor market policies and institutions on the economic outcomes of low-income Americans.

At American University, he co-Directs the PEER Center—a research and policy action laboratory aimed at working with policy makers and institution leaders, bringing insights from academic research and rigorous data analysis to assist with challenging policy and intervention design initiatives.

Matsudaira served as Deputy Under Secretary at the U.S. Department of Education in the Biden Administration. While serving in that role he created the office and served as the first ever Chief Economist of the Department. He and his team brought economic analysis and quick-turn data analyses to help design higher education regulations and executive actions related to loan repayment, higher education accountability, data disaggregation, and student debt relief. Previously, he served as the Chief Economist of the Council of Economic Advisers in the Obama Administration.
For the Media
To request an interview for a news story, call AU Communications at 202-885-5950 or submit a request.

Teaching

Spring 2025

  • PUAD-602 Quant Meth for Pol Analysis II