Dr. Irma Elo

Biography

Irma T. Elo is the Tamsen Michael Brown Presidential Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania. She obtained her Ph.D. in Demography from Princeton University in 1990. Elo has an extensive background in both research and leadership roles in the areas of population studies and health disparities. She has served as a Research Associate at the Population Studies Center and the Population Aging Research Center. Her professional experience includes holding key positions as Department Chair and Director at the Population Studies Center. Elo has been an active member of various national and international committees, including serving as the Chair of the Board of Scientific Counselors at the National Center for Health Statistics and participating in the Census Bureau’s Scientific Advisory Committee. In 2023, she was elected President of the Population Association of America. Her research primarily focuses on socioeconomic and racial/ethnic disparities in health, cognition, and mortality across the life course, along with demographic estimation of mortality. In recent years, her work has expanded to include health and mortality in the foreign-born population.

Research Interests