New Faculty
2020-21 Cohort
Martha Bailey
Economics
Martha’s research focuses on issues in labor economics, demography and health in the United States, within the long-run perspective of economic history, including studies of Great Society programs, the gender gap in pay, and social mobility.
Natalie Bau
Economics
Natalie is an economist studying topics in development and education economics. She is particularly interested in the industrial organization of educational markets and the effect of cultural traditions on human capital investment.
Mario Biagioli
Communication
Araceli (Cesi) Cruz
Political Science
Justin Dunnavant
Anthropology
Justin is an archaeologist who investigates the relationship between ecology and slavery through terrestrial and maritime landscapes.
Daniel Eisenberg
Economics
Daniel’s research goal is to improve understanding of how to invest effectively in the mental health of young people.
Jason Ferguson
Sociology
Jason studies the global struggle for and against homosexual rights, the divergent trajectories of nations in how they regulate same-sex practices, and the domestic and geopolitical dimensions of that regulation.
Chris Herring
Sociology
Choon Hwee
History
Choon’s research interests include the Ottoman empire, infrastructure, social and economic history.
Desi Rodriguez-Lonebear
Sociology
Desi is a social demographer focused on Indigenous populations and tribal nations. Her research examines the intersection of race, indigeneity, data, and inequality.
Floridalma Boj Lopez
Chicana/o Studies
Floridalma’s work uses a transborder approach to analyze the experiences of Maya migrants as they cross settler colonial borders and encounter distinct racial logics in the United States. Her research examines cultural production among the Guatemalan Maya diaspora with a particular emphasis on intergenerational relationships, gender, and the production of Indigenous migrant community in Los Angeles, CA.
Laura Chávez-Moreno
Chicana/o Studies
Laura’s work examines how schooling teaches about race and makes Latinidad. She connects these theorizations with questions about educational equity, particularly in the areas of language and literacy.
Natasha Quadlin
Sociology
Natasha is a quantitative and experimental sociologist whose work focuses on issues of social inequality, education, gender, work, and family.
Will Rafey
Economics
Will works on problems in environmental economics, focusing primarily on climate change and the evaluation and design of new environmental regulations.
Michael Rubens
Economics
Michael’s research focuses on industrial organization and labor economics. He is particularly interested in the interaction between imperfect labor market competition and technological change.
Stuart Soroka
Communication
Jessica’s work spans substantive areas — employing social psychological concepts and theories in the study of family, religion, work, and education — and uses diverse methodological approaches.
Steve Stroessner
Communication
Steve’s research examines cognitive and motivational factors involved in intergroup perception and communication, with a specific focus on the role of stereotypes. His recent work examines similar processes in human-robotic interactions.
Veronica Terriquez
Chicana/o Studies
Veronica’s research focuses on Latinx communities, youth transitions to adulthood, social inequality, and immigrant political incorporation.
Andrés Villarreal
Sociology
Andrés conducts research in the areas of international migration, race and ethnicity, social stratification and health.
Greg Woolf
History
Wei-hsin Yu
Sociology