Dr. Elizabeth Powers

Biography

Elizabeth T. Powers is a Professor in the Department of Economics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She has previously served as an Economist at the Research Department of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland and as a Junior Staff Economist in the President's Council of Economic Advisers during the George H.W. Bush Administration. Powers holds a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania and graduated cum laude from Vassar College with departmental distinction in Economics. Her research interests include public policy and its effects on well-being across the life-course, with significant work on the unintended effects of social policies aimed at single-parent households, individuals with disabilities, and the elderly, as well as caregiving in non-familial settings such as daycares and nursing homes. Powers is also engaged in projects examining child development and the impact of significant family events on children's healthy development. She has conducted research focused on the college pipeline for women economics majors and has an extensive record of public service, including data analysis for Illinois Department of Human Services' reports. Powers is affiliated with the Joint Centers for Poverty Research at Northwestern University and the University of Michigan's Disability Research Institute, among others.

Research Interests

Courses