EDUCATION

Ph.D., Economics, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, 2012

            Dissertation: Essays on the Persistence of Poverty

           Advisor: Dr. James P. Ziliak

M.A., Economics, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 2008

B.A., Economics and Business Administration, Transylvania University, Lexington, KY, 2006

ACADEMIC EMPLOYMENT

Assistant Professor of Economics, Department of Economics, Elon University, Elon, NC (Fall, 2014 – present)

Assistant Professor of Economics (tenure track), Urban and Regional Studies Program, University of Wisconsin – Green Bay, Green Bay, WI (Fall, 2012 – Spring, 2014)

Visiting Research Scholar, The George Washington University, Washington, DC (Summer, 2012)

Research Assistant, University of Kentucky Center for Poverty Research (UKCPR) (May, 2009 – April, 2012)

Research Assistant, National Bureau of Economic Research and Vanderbilt University (Summer, 2007 – Summer, 2008)

NON-ACADEMIC EMPLOYMENT

Short-term Consultant, South Asia Region, The World Bank, Washington DC (Summer, 2012; 2016 – 2017)

RESEARCH INTERESTS

          Labor Economics, Economics of Poverty, Empirical Econometrics, Regional Economics

PUBLISHED PAPERS


“College Readiness, Early Post-Secondary Academic Performance and the GED Degree: Evidence from Kentucky” (with Katy Rouse) The BE Journal of Economic Analysis and Policy. Vol. 22, No. 1, 2022: 67-98

“International Comparisons of Poverty in South Asia.” (with David Newhouse and Monica Yanez-Pagans) Asian Development Review. Vol 38, No. 1, March 2021. (also available as World Bank Policy Research Working Paper No. 8683)

"The impact of population agglomeration of an area on its neighbors: evidence from the USA" Annals of Regional Science. Vol 65, Issue 1, August 2020: 1-26

“Multidimensional Human Opportunity Index” (with Shabana Mitra) Social Indicators Research.Vol 130, Issue 2, January 2017: 523-535

“Investigating Inequality of Income in the United States” Journal of Income Distribution. Vol. 25, No. 3-4, 2016

“Estimating the Elasticity of Growth in the US Using the Generalized Means of Income”  Social Indicators Research. Vol 129, No. 1, October, 2016: 95-112

“On Persistent Poverty in a Rich Country” (with Jenny Minier and James Ziliak) Southern Economic Journal. Vol. 81, Issue 3. January, 2015: 653-678

“Childhood Neighborhood Conditions and the Persistence of Adult Income” Regional Science and Urban Economics Vol. 43, No. 4. July, 2013: 684-693

WORKING PAPERS

"Despairing Communities in the United States" (with Tom Tiemann)

"Dictatorship and the Provision of Public Goods" (with Shabana Mitra and Anirban Mitra)

“Home-based Work Decisions among Bangladeshi Women” (with Aphichoke Kotikula, the World Bank)

“Exploring the Factors Affecting Differences in Height Between Infant Boys and Girls in Bangladesh”

“The Impact of Foreign Aid on Growth” (with Brandon Sheridan)

POLICY PAPERS 

Solotaroff, Jennifer L.; Kotikula, Aphichoke; Lonnberg, Anna Tara; Ali, Snigdha; Pande, Rohini P.; Jahan, Ferdous. 2019. Voices to Choices: Bangladesh's Journey in Women's Economic Empowerment (English). Washington, D.C.: World Bank Group. (Provided technical assistance for the project)

“Islam, Tonmoy; Newhouse, David; Yanez-Pagans, Monica. 2018. "International Comparisons of Poverty in South Asia." Policy Research Working Paper No. 8683. World Bank, Washington, DC. © World Bank. 2018. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/31085 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”

A Decade of Progress in Reducing Poverty, 2000-2010.  Eds.Gimenez, L., Faiz Ahmed, Iffath Sharif, I. and Dean Jolliffee, Bangladesh Development Series. No. 31. Washington, DC: The World Bank. 2013. (Research Assistance Provided)

Ziliak, James P. Alternative Poverty Measures and the Geographic Distribution of Poverty in the United States. Report Prepared for the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 2010 (Research Assistance: Bradley Hardy, Charles Hokayem, and T M Tonmoy Islam). 

PROFESSIONAL PRESENTATIONS

Presenter, The 46^th Annual Meeting of The Eastern Economic Association, Boston, MA (March, 2020)

Presenter, The 89^th Annual Meeting of The Southern Economic Association, Fort Lauderdale, FL (November, 2019)

Invited Speaker, Davidson College, Davidson, NC (November, 2019)

Presenter, The 45th Annual Meeting of The Eastern Economic Association, New York, NY (February-March, 2019)

Presenter, The 92nd Annual Meeting of The Western Economic Association International, San Diego, CA (June, 2017)

Presenter, The 43rd Annual Meeting of The Eastern Economic Association, New York, NY (February, 2017)

Invited Speaker University of Wisconsin – La Crosse, La Crosse, Wisconsin (November, 2016).

Participant, Workshop on “The Roles and Opportunities for Private Sector in Agro-processing Industry of Bangladesh”, Dhaka, Bangladesh (June, 2016)

          -     Hosted by Innovision, Katalyst, and Swisscontact; funded by UKaid and Swiss Agency for Development and                                Cooperation 

Presenter, The 85th  Annual Meeting of The Southern Economic Association, New Orleans, LA (November, 2015)

Presenter, The 83rd  Annual Meeting of The Southern Economic Association, Tampa, FL (November, 2013)

Invited Speaker, St. Norbert College, De Pere, Wisconsin (February, 2013)

Invited Discussant, Drivers of Poverty Reduction in Asia and the Pacific: Workshop on Poverty Dynamics and Inclusive Growth Measurement, George Washington University, Washington, DC (December, 2012)

        -    Hosted by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in collaboration with Institute for International Economic Policy (IIEP, 

              George Washington University) and Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI, University of Oxford).

Presenter, The 82nd  Annual Meeting of The Southern Economic Association, New Orleans, LA (November, 2012)

Presenter, The 2012 Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management (APPAM) Fall Research Conference, Baltimore, MD (November, 2012)

-          presented a poster in a poster session and it was judged to be the best poster

Presenter, International Conference on "The Economics of Ultra-poverty: Causes and Remedies," George Washington University, Washington, DC (March, 2012)

Presenter, The 81st  Annual Meeting of The Southern Economic Association, Washington, DC (November, 2011)

Presenter, International Poverty Solutions Collaborative Conference, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH (October, 2011)

Presenter, Kentucky Economic Association, Frankfort, KY (October, 2011)

Presenter, The 80th Annual Meeting of The Southern Economic Association, Atlanta, GA (November, 2010)

Presenter, Kentucky Economic Association, Lexington, KY (October, 2005)

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

Referee, Applied Economics Letters; Asian Development Perspectives; Contemporary Economic Policy; Economic Alternatives; Economics Bulletin; Economic Inquiry; Economic Modelling; Growth and Change; Journal of Biomedical Analytics; Journal of Economic Studies; Journal of Population Economics; Journal of South Asian Development; PLOS ONE; Population Research and Policy Review; Review of Development Economics; Social Indicators Research; Southern Economic Journal; World Development

Member, American Economic Association; Association for Economic and Development Studies on Bangladesh

SERVICE

Co-Chair, United Way Fundraising Campaign, Elon University (Fall, 2021)

Member, Economics Faculty Search Committee, Elon University (Fall, 2021)

Member, MBA Revision Committee, Elon University (Fall, 2021)

Member, Advisory Board of Policy Studies Program, Elon University (Spring, 2021 - )

Member, Diversity and Inclusion Taskforce, Love School of Business, Elon University (Fall, 2020 – )

Member, Honor Board, Elon University (Fall, 2020 - )

Member, Undergraduate Research Program Advisory Committee (URPAC), Elon University (Fall, 2016 - )

Member, Advisory Board of Peace Corp Prep Steering Committee, Elon University (Fall, 2017 - )

Faculty Advisor, Elon Microfinance Initiative (EMI), Elon University (Fall, 2016 - )

Faculty Advisor, Circle K – Elon University Chapter (Fall, 2015 - )

Member, Advisory Board of the International and Global Studies Major, Elon University (Spring, 2015 - )

Member, Principles of Economics (ECO 111) Content Areas Revision Committee, Elon University (Fall, 2018 - )

Volunteer Teacher, Summer in the Village Program, Elon University (Summers 2015, 2017 - 2019)

Member, Residential Life Advisory Committee, Elon University (Fall, 2017 – Spring, 2019)

Member, Enrollment for the Future Community Working Group (part of 2030 Strategic Planning) Elon University. Spring, 2019

External Dissertation Reviewer, Indian Institute of Management – Bangalore (March 27, 2018)

Volunteer, The Village Project, Burlington, North Carolina (run by Elon University, Fall, 2014 – Spring, 2017)

Member, Distinguished University Professor Selection Committee, Elon University (Spring, 2017)

Member, Economics Faculty Search Committee, Elon University (Fall, 2016)

Member, “FR&D Reassigned Time Sub-Committee” Elon University (Fall, 2016)

Guest Speaker, “Poverty and Inequality in the United States” United Church of Chapel Hill (October 9, 2016)

Presenter, “Tobacco Farmers of Appalachia/North Carolina” Elon University (September 5, 2016)

Guest Speaker, Symposium for Students of Physician Assistant Studies, Elon University (October 22, 2015)

Panelist, “Forced Migration, Violence, and Poverty in a Global Society: A Panel Discussion” Elon University (March 4, 2015)

Moderator on economic inequality, filming of “Southern District (Zona Sur)” Elon University (November 21, 2014)

Panelist, “Living on a Dollar a Day” University of Wisconsin – Green Bay (February 18, 2014)

Interview on President Obama’s Proposal for Minimum Wage Increase, CBS affiliate in Green Bay, WI (January 29, 2014)

Senator, University of Wisconsin – Green Bay Faculty Senate (Winter, 2013)

COURSES TAUGHT

At Elon University

            ECO 111: Principles of Economics (in-class and online)

            ECO 317: Gender and Development

            ECO 347: Introduction to Econometrics 

            ECO 440: Urban Economics and Planning

            ECO 499: Advanced Research in Economics 

            MBA/MScM 643: Analytics I: Quantitative Methods

At the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay

             ECO 202: Macroeconomic Analysis 

              ECO 310: Introduction to Quantitative Methods and Econometrics                      

              ECO 342/URS 342: Community Economic Development 

              UR RE ST 205: Urban Social Problems 

              UR RE ST 100: Introduction to Urban Studies 

At the University of Kentucky

              ECO 391: Economics and Business Statistics 

              ECO 202: Principles of Microeconomics 

FELLOWSHIP AND HONORS

Dean’s Award in the Excellence of Teaching, Martha and Spencer Love School of Business, Elon University (Spring, 2021)

CATL Diversity and Inclusion Grant, Elon University (Fall, 2020) - $5,000 grant (with Kate Upton, Brandon Sheridan, Margarita Kaprielyan, and Adam Aiken)

CATL Diversity and Inclusion Grant, Elon University (Fall, 2018) - $5,000 grant (with Kate Upton, Brandon Sheridan, Margarita Kaprielyan, and Adam Aiken)

Love School of Business Summer Research Award, Elon University (Summer, 2018) - $3,750 grant (with Brandon Sheridan)

Faculty Research and Development Summer Fellowship, Elon University (Summer, 2017) - $8,700 grant

Best Practices in Writing Pedagogy Grant, Center for Writing Excellence, Elon University (Spring, 2017) - $1,000 grant

Faculty Research and Development Summer Fellowship, Elon University (Summer, 2016) - $8,000 grant

Best Practices in Writing Pedagogy Grant, Center for Writing Excellence (with Jennifer Platania, Katy Rouse and Douglas Redington), Elon University (Spring, 2016) - $4,000 grant

New Faculty Summer Research Fund, Elon University (Summer, 2015) - $4,500 grant

Love School of Business Summer Research Award, Elon University (Summer, 2015) - $3,000 grant

Teaching Sabbatical, Elon University (Fall, 2015)

2013 Online Teaching Fellowship, University of Wisconsin – Green Bay (March, 2013)

The 2011 Graduate Student Award, Southern Economic Association (November, 2011)

Dissertation Year Fellowship, University of Kentucky (Summer, 2011 - Summer, 2012)

Director’s Research Assistantship Award, University of Kentucky (Fall, 2009 – Summer, 2011)

Kentucky Opportunity Fellowship, University of Kentucky (Winter, 2009)

Kentucky Graduate Scholarship, University Of Kentucky (Fall, 2008)

Tuition Scholarship, Vanderbilt University (Fall, 2007 – Winter, 2008)

University Fellowship Vanderbilt University (Fall, 2006 – Winter, 2007)

David and Betty Jones Faculty Development Fund, Transylvania University (Summer, 2005)

Morrison Scholarship, Transylvania University (Winter, 2003 – May, 2006)

LANGUAGES KNOWN

Bengali (excellent), English (excellent), Hindi (very good), Urdu (very good)