RSF Bulletin

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RSF Bulletin

2018–2019 Visiting Scholar Class

The Russell Sage Foundation is pleased to announce the appointment of fifteen leading social scientists as visiting scholars for the 2018–2019 academic year. During their time in residence, they will pursue research and writing projects that reflect the foundation’s commitment to strengthening the social sciences and conducting research to “improve social and living conditions in the United States.”

To read more about each scholar’s research project, use the links below or visit the incoming scholars page on our website.

Edwin Amenta (University of California, Irvine)
Tonya Brito (University of Wisconsin–Madison)
Noreen Goldman (Princeton University)
Peter A. Hall (Harvard University)
Bradley L. Hardy (American University)
Jen Heerwig (SUNY–Stony Brook University)
Alexander Hertel-Fernandez (Columbia University)
Arnold K. Ho (University of Michigan)
Philip Oreopoulos (University of Toronto)
Francesca Polletta (University of California, Irvine)
Anne R. Pebley (University of California, Los Angeles)
Carrie L. Shandra (SUNY–Stony Brook University)
Eric Verhoogen (Columbia University)
Adam Waytz (Northwestern University)
Ariel White (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

Three New RSF Journal Issues

New Immigrant Labor Market Niches
Today, about 40 million immigrants live in the United States, most of whom came seeking to improve their earnings and living conditions. Depending on their education and skills, their social networks, government regulations, and other factors, immigrants tend to concentrate in specific sectors of the labor market. Volume 4, Issue 1 of RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences, edited by sociologist Susan Eckstein (Boston University) and economist Giovanni Peri (University of California, Davis), explores how new immigrant groups navigate the opportunities and constraints presented by various labor market niches and how they influence the economic and social fabric of American society.

Several articles examine the history of immigrant labor market niches and how they have affected local economies. These include high-skilled niches such as the technology sector, middle-skilled niches such as nursing, and low-skilled niches such as restaurant work. Contributors analyze the divisions between these niches and examine how they influence markets both within the U.S. and abroad. Together, these studies contribute to a deeper understanding of how and why new immigrants gravitate to specific lines of work. View the open-access issue.

Double Issue: Anti-Poverty Initiatives for the United States
According to the official poverty measure, about 14 percent of Americans live in poverty, and many have limited opportunities for upward mobility. With an economy characterized by increasing numbers of unstable and low-wage jobs, a fraying social safety net, and stagnant wages for workers without a college degree, what public policy reforms might reduce poverty? Volume 4, Issue 2 & Issue 3 of RSF, co-sponsored with the Robin Hood Foundation and edited by poverty researchers Lawrence M. Berger, Maria Cancian, and Katherine A. Magnuson (University of Wisconsin–Madison), bring together many innovative, evidence-based anti-poverty policy proposals crafted by leading social science researchers and policy analysts.

The first issue highlights initiatives that restructure federal income tax and transfer programs to extend greater support to low-income families, regardless of work status. These proposals include a universal child allowance, a renter’s tax credit, and guaranteed child support payments for single parents. The second issue features policies that would reduce the extent of low-wage work by boosting education, training, and access to better jobs. These proposals include an expansion of the Head Start program, a federal jobs guarantee, and a model for a national community college program. View the open-access issues.

Spring 2018 Book Catalog

A list of new and forthcoming books from the foundation for Spring 2018 is now available on our website. The list includes Homeward by Bruce Western (Harvard University and Columbia University), an in-depth investigation of the challenges faced by former prisoners reentering society; The Government-Citizen Disconnect by Suzanne Mettler (Cornell University), a study of the growing gulf between people’s perceptions of the federal government and the role it actually plays in their lives; Immigrants, Evangelicals, and Politics in an Era of Demographic Change by Janelle Wong (University of Maryland), a study of a new generation of Asian American and Latino evangelicals and their political orientations; and Sites Unseen by Scott Frickel (Brown University) and James Elliott (Rice University), an examination of the processes of social and environmental transformation and risk containment in cities.

A new issue of RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences, “Biosocial Pathways of Well-Being Across the Life Course,” edited by Thomas W. McDade (Northwestern University) and Kathleen Mullan Harris (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill), will also be released this spring.

View the Spring 2018 catalog.

RSF Accepting Visiting Scholar Applications for 2019–2020 Academic Year

The foundation invites visiting scholar applications for the 2019-2020 academic year. The visiting scholar program, established over thirty years ago, is a unique opportunity for social scientists to pursue research projects that investigate essential questions on social, economic, and political life in the United States while in residence at RSF. The program fosters the exchange of ideas in a vibrant interdisciplinary environment and promotes collaborations between researchers. Applications are reviewed by outside experts; final selections are made by Russell Sage Foundation trustees. Applications for the 2019-2020 academic year will be accepted until June 28, 2018.

View further information on the program, including eligibility requirements and application.

Funding Opportunity: Small Grants on “Improving Education and Reducing Inequality”

RSF and the W.T. Grant Foundation invite research proposals from early career researchers that would further our understanding of educational opportunity and success in the U.S. by analyzing data on academic achievement from the Stanford Education Data Archive (SEDA). We prefer studies that identify the effects of policies, practices, and conditions on achievement inequality over descriptive or correlational studies, and are particularly interested in studies aimed at understanding how to reduce inequalities. The deadline for applications is March 1, 2018.