Economics scholar to discuss relationship between socioeconomic status and children’s health. Tuesday, April 10, 2007

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY — Janet Currie, the chair of the department of economics at Columbia University, will deliver the 2007 Martin H. Crego lecture entitled "Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise? The Effect of Health on Childhood Human Capital" on Tuesday, April 10, at 5:45 p.m., in Sanders Auditorium (Sanders Classroom building, Room 212). The economics department sponsors the annual Martin H. Crego lecture, which is free and open to the public.

[Left: Janet Currie] For the past decade, Currie's research has focused on evaluating programs aimed at poor children and families. She has written about early intervention programs, and researched programs to expand health insurance, public housing, and food and nutrition. Much of this research is summarized in her latest book, The Invisible Safety Net: Protecting the Nation's Poor Children and Families (2006), which David Zimmerman of Williams College called an "extraordinarily important and well written book with an impeccable synthesis of the most credible existing research."

Prior to publication, Currie also worked for several journals in an editorial capacity, including the Journal of Health Economics, the Journal of Labor Economics, and the Journal of Public Economics. She is now researching social determinants of child health, and the relationship between socioeconomic status and health.

Currie has served on several National Academy of Sciences panels, including the Committee on Population, and currently serves on the Executive Committee of the American Economics Association. She is also a Fellow of the Society of Labor Economists, a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, and an affiliate of the University of Michigan's National Poverty Center. Currie previously taught at Princeton, where she received her PhD; at UCLA, where she held the Charles E. Davidson Chair in Economics; and at MIT.

Individuals with disabilities requiring accommodations at Vassar should contact the Office of Campus Activities at (845) 437-5370.

Vassar College is a highly selective, coeducational, independent, residential, liberal arts college founded in 1861.

Individuals with disabilities requiring accommodations or information on accessibility should contact Campus Activities Office at (845) 437-5370. Without sufficient notice, appropriate space and/or assistance may not be available.

Vassar College is a highly selective, coeducational, independent, residential liberal arts college founded in 1861.

This article was posted on Tuesday, March 27th, 2007.