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UKCPR awarded grant from Humana Foundation

Oct 14, 2025

UKCPR director James Ziliak was awarded a research grant from the Humana Foundation to produce the first county-level estimates of food insecurity among older persons in the United States. The research will be conducted in collaboration with Craig Gundersen of Baylor University and a UKCPR research affiliate.

UKCPR research affiliates author op-ed on food insecurity

Oct 14, 2025

UKCPR director James Ziliak, along with Colleen Heflin of Syracuse University and Hilary Hoynes of University of California at Berkeley, published an op-ed at The Hill in response to the USDA's recent decision to stop collecting the annual survey on food insecurity in the United States.

James Ziliak selected as Rebecca Blank Fellow

Jul 9, 2025

James Ziliak, UKCPR director and Gatton Endowed Chair in Microeconomics, was selected by the American Academy of Political and Social Science (AAPSS) to be the 2025 Rebecca Blank Fellow. The AAPSS was established in 1889 with the aim to bring social science research and evidence to bear on pressing social issues. The Rebecca Blank Fellow was established in 2024 to honor the late Rebecca Blanks's contributions to research and public policy on poverty and inequality.

Robert Moffitt honored in special issue of Journal of Labor Economics

Jul 9, 2025

Robert Moffitt, Krieger-Eisenhower Professor of Economics at Johns Hopkins University and UKCPR research affiliate, was honored in April 2025 with a special issue of the Journal of Labor Economics dedicated to his research career. Robert’s research over the past five decades spans a broad cross-section of topics in labor economics, public economics, and econometrics.

Elizabeth Krause receives grant from Horowitz Foundation for Social Policy

Jul 9, 2025

Elizabeth Krause, a PhD student in Economics and UKCPR graduate student research fellow, received a grant from the highly selective Horowitz Foundation for Social Policy for the 2025-2026 academic year. The Foundation's mission is to support policy research by emerging scholars whose work addresses contemporary issues in the social sciences.

UKCPR associate director appointed as senior advisor to Department of Education

May 23, 2023

Rajeev Darolia, UKCPR associate director, was recently appointed as a senior advisor to the U.S. Department of Education. Darolia is a professor of public policy in the Martin School of Public Policy and Administration. His research focuses on the impact of education policy on economic mobility and financial stability. Read the story.

Committee chaired by Ziliak recommends methodology updates to Supplemental Poverty Measure

Apr 3, 2023

UKCPR Director James Ziliak chaired a committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine that recommends updating the methodology used by the Census Bureau to calculate the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM). The new report suggests use of a more comprehensive measure than the Official Poverty Measure to reflect more accurately a household's basic needs and resources. Read more.

Ziliak and Jones receive recognition for EITC paper

Nov 9, 2022

UKCPR Director James Ziliak and colleague Maggie Jones, principal economist at the U.S. Census Bureau, were recently selected to receive the 2022 Richard A. Musgrave Prize for a paper published in the National Tax Journal. Their research analyzed the impact of the Earned Income Tax Credit as an anti-poverty measure. Read More.

Ziliak quoted by CNN on food insecurity trends in U.S.

Sep 7, 2022

UKCPR Director James Ziliak is quoted in a new CNN article that examines food insecurity trends in the U.S. The CNN report notes that food insecurity among families with children declined in 2021 following a spike in 2020 during the pandemic. Read more.

Ziliak quoted in New York Times on historic SNAP benefits increase

Aug 16, 2021

UKCPR Director James Ziliak is quoted in an Aug. 15 New York Times article about an historic increase in benefits for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which will see average benefits for needy families rise by 25 percent. Read full story.

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