MPES Welcomes Elira Kuka

“Do Human Capital Decisions Respond to the Returns to Education? Evidence from DACA”

Elira Kuka
Assistant Professor of Economics
Southern Methodist University

Wednesday, March 14, 2018
 1:00 – 2:00PM
Annenberg G02

Elira Kuka is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics at Southern Methodist University, as well as a Faculty Research Fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) and a Research Affiliate at IZA – Institute of Labor Economics. Prior to joining SMU in 2015, she received a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California, Davis.

Elira’s research interests are centered around understanding how government policies affect individual behavior and family wellbeing, to what extent they provide social insurance, and how effectively they alleviate poverty and inequality. Specifically, her current work focuses on analyzing: i) the potential benefits of U.S. safety net programs, which include Unemployment Insurance (UI), Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI); ii) policies that affect academic achievement and reduce socioeconomics gaps; and iii) the protective power of the U.S. safety net during recessions.