Christina Hull Paxson (born February 6, 1960) is an American
economist
An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social science discipline of economics.
The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this field there are ...
and
public health
Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the det ...
expert serving as the 19th president of
Brown University. Previously, she was the Hughes Rogers Professor of Economics & Public Affairs at
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...
as well as the dean of
Princeton School of Public and International Affairs
The Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (formerly the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs) is a professional public policy school at Princeton University. The school provides an array of comprehensive course ...
.
In March 2012, Paxson was selected as the 19th
president of Brown University
The following is a list of presidents of Brown University From 1765 to the 1920s, the president was required by the University Charter to be of the Baptist denomination:
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of Presidents Of Brown University
*
B ...
. She officially succeeded
Ruth Simmons
Ruth Simmons (born Ruth Jean Stubblefield, July 3, 1945) is an American professor and academic administrator. She is president of Prairie View A&M University, a historically black university.
Simmons previously served as the 18th president of B ...
on July 1, 2012, and was inaugurated on October 27, 2012.
Early life and education
After spending her childhood in
Forest Hills, a suburb of
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...
, Pennsylvania, Paxson received her B.A. from
Swarthmore College in 1982, where she majored in
economics
Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...
and minored in
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
and
philosophy as a member of the
Phi Beta Kappa Society.
Originally a graduate student at
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
's
Business School, Paxson transferred to Columbia's
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, receiving her M.A. and Ph.D. in economics, in 1985 and 1987, respectively, with a focus on labor.
Paxson was advised by
Joseph Altonji and her dissertation involved analyzing the effects of consumer interest rates on the consumer credit market.
Paxson is married to Ari Gabinet and has two children, Nicholas and Benjamin.
Career
In 2000, she founded the Center for Health and Wellbeing at
Princeton
Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ni ...
, an interdisciplinary research center based in the
Woodrow Wilson School
The Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (formerly the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs) is a professional public policy school at Princeton University. The school provides an array of comprehensive course ...
. She served as the chair of Princeton's Economics Department in academic year 2008–09. She was also the founding director of an NIA Center for the Economics and Demography of Aging at Princeton.
During her time at Princeton, Paxson also served as a visiting professor at the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
's
Wharton School
The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania ( ; also known as Wharton Business School, the Wharton School, Penn Wharton, and Wharton) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in P ...
.
Paxson's most recent research focuses on the impact of childhood health and circumstances on economic and health outcomes over the lifecourse; the impact of the
AIDS crisis on children's health and education in Africa; and the long run consequences of
Hurricane Katrina on the mental and physical health of vulnerable populations. Paxson has been a Senior Editor of ''
The Future of Children
The Future of Children is a biannual academic journal published by the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University and the Brookings Institution
The Brookings Institution, often stylized as simply Brookings, is ...
'', an interdisciplinary journal that works to build a bridge between cutting edge social science research and the policy community.
In 2013, Paxson wrote a ''
New Republic'' op-ed, arguing for ongoing relevance of the humanities from an economist's perspective.
Paxson has also maintained numerous institutional affiliations: in addition to being a member of the
Council on Foreign Relations, she was elected to the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, a ...
in 2017. The previous year, she became a member of the Board of Directors of the
Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. After serving as its deputy chair, she became the chair of its Board of Directors in 2021. In 2018, Paxson received an
honorary doctorate
An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...
from
Williams College
Williams College is a private liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams, a colonist from the Province of Massachusetts Bay who was kill ...
.
She has been a member of the Kol Emet congregation a Jewish
Reconstructionist synagogue, committed to the growth of a spiritually and intellectually engaging
Judaism
Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in t ...
.
In wake of the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, Paxson penned a ''New York Times'' op-ed and appeared on
CNN
CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...
, outlining her views on the importance of reopening colleges safely in the fall of 2020. On June 4, 2020, Paxson testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, during a hearing entitled “COVID-19: Going Back to College Safely."
Brown University
As President of Brown University, Paxson has focused on a set of strategic goals announced in 2014; among these institutional priorities are
data science, the creative arts, and
brain science. Under Paxson's leadership, the University has established a
School of Public Health as well as numerous centers and institutes including the
Brown Arts Institute, the Brown Institute for Translational Science, the Data Science Initiative, and the Nelson Center for Entrepreneurship.
Paxson has overseen a considerable expansion of Brown's academic, performing arts, and residential facilities. Expansion of Brown's physical footprint under Paxson's leadership has been controversial, at times spurring criticism from community organizations and preservation groups.
Paxson has also led Brown University to remain at the forefront of prestigious higher education institutions. For three consecutive years under her leadership, Brown students and graduates have earned the most
Fulbright Scholarships
The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people o ...
of all U.S. Universities.
She has also sustained undergraduate financial aid as the fastest growing area of Brown's budget by increasing scholarships for low-income families and eliminating loans from University-awarded financial aid packages, as part of The Brown Promise, in addition to Brown's Pathways to Diversity and Inclusion action plan.
A Fall 2021 poll conducted by ''
The Brown Daily Herald
''The Brown Daily Herald'' is the student newspaper of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island.
Established in 1866 and published daily since 1891, The ''Herald'' is the second-oldest student newspaper among America's college dailies. I ...
'' found that 47.1% of surveyed students "strongly" or "somewhat" disapproved of Paxson's leadership while 32.8% "strongly" or "somewhat" approved. The publication's Fall 2017 poll placed Paxson's approval rating at 61.9%.
Selected publications
* “Stature and Status: Height, Ability, and Labor Market Outcomes” (with
Anne Case
Anne Catherine Case, Lady Deaton, (born July 27, 1958) is an American economist who is currently the Alexander Stewart 1886 Professor of Economics and Public Affairs, Emeritus, at Princeton University.
Early life and career
She graduated from ...
), ''Journal of Political Economy'', 116(3): 499–532, June 2008.
* “Racial Disparities in Childhood Asthma in the US: Evidence from the National Health Interview Survey, 1997–2003” (wit
Marla McDanieland
Jane Waldfogel), ''Pediatrics'' 117(5): e868-e877, May 2006.
* “Orphans in Africa: Parental Death, Poverty and School Enrollment” (with Anne Case and Joseph Ableidinger), ''Demography'' 41(3), pp. 483–508, August 2004.
* “Economic Status and Health in Childhood: The Origins of the Gradient” (with Anne Case an
Darren Lubotsky, ''American Economic Review'' 92(5), December 2002.
* “Economies of Scale, Household Size, and the Demand for Food” (with
Angus Deaton
Sir Angus Stewart Deaton (born 19 October 1945) is a British economist and academic. Deaton is currently a Senior Scholar and the Dwight D. Eisenhower Professor of Economics and International Affairs Emeritus at the Princeton School of Public ...
), ''Journal of Political Economy'' 106(5): 897–930, October 1998.
* “Intertemporal Choice and Inequality” (with Angus Deaton), ''Journal of Political Economy'' 102(3): 437–467, 1994.
* “Consumption and Income Seasonality in Thailand,” ''Journal of Political Economy'' 101(1): 39–72, February 1993.
* “Using Weather Variability to Estimate the Response of Savings to Transitory Income in Thailand,” ''American Economic Review'' 82(1), March 1992.
*"Causes and Consequences of Early Life Health" (with
Anne Case
Anne Catherine Case, Lady Deaton, (born July 27, 1958) is an American economist who is currently the Alexander Stewart 1886 Professor of Economics and Public Affairs, Emeritus, at Princeton University.
Early life and career
She graduated from ...
) ''Demography'' 47(1): S65-S85, March 2010.
*"The Long Reach of Childhood Health and Circumstance: Evidence from the Whitehall II Study" (with
Anne Case
Anne Catherine Case, Lady Deaton, (born July 27, 1958) is an American economist who is currently the Alexander Stewart 1886 Professor of Economics and Public Affairs, Emeritus, at Princeton University.
Early life and career
She graduated from ...
), ''Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society'' 121(554): F183-F204, 2008.
*"The Impact of the AIDS Pandemic on Health Services in Africa: Evidence from Demographic and Health Surveys" (With
Anne Case
Anne Catherine Case, Lady Deaton, (born July 27, 1958) is an American economist who is currently the Alexander Stewart 1886 Professor of Economics and Public Affairs, Emeritus, at Princeton University.
Early life and career
She graduated from ...
), ''Demography'' 48(2): 675–697, May 2009.
*"Making Sense of the Labor Market Height Premium: Evidence From the British Household Panel Survey" (With
Anne Case
Anne Catherine Case, Lady Deaton, (born July 27, 1958) is an American economist who is currently the Alexander Stewart 1886 Professor of Economics and Public Affairs, Emeritus, at Princeton University.
Early life and career
She graduated from ...
and Mahnaz Islam), ''Economics Letters'' 102(3): 174–176, March 2008.
*"The Income Gradient in Children's Health: A Comment on Currie, Shields and Wheatley Price" (With
Anne Case
Anne Catherine Case, Lady Deaton, (born July 27, 1958) is an American economist who is currently the Alexander Stewart 1886 Professor of Economics and Public Affairs, Emeritus, at Princeton University.
Early life and career
She graduated from ...
& Diana Lee), ''Journal of Health Economics'' 27(3), 801–807, October 2007
*"Socioeconomic Status and Health in Childhood: A Comment on Chen, Martin and Matthews" (With
Anne Case
Anne Catherine Case, Lady Deaton, (born July 27, 1958) is an American economist who is currently the Alexander Stewart 1886 Professor of Economics and Public Affairs, Emeritus, at Princeton University.
Early life and career
She graduated from ...
& Tom Vogl), ''Social Science & Medicine, 189-214''
*"From Cradle to Grave? The Lasting Impact of Childhood Health and Circumstance" (With
Anne Case
Anne Catherine Case, Lady Deaton, (born July 27, 1958) is an American economist who is currently the Alexander Stewart 1886 Professor of Economics and Public Affairs, Emeritus, at Princeton University.
Early life and career
She graduated from ...
& Angela Fertig), ''Journal of Health Economics 24(2), 365-389.''
References
External links
Brown University Office of the PresidentChristina Paxson Biography from Brown UniversityPaxson Curriculum VitaePublications on the National Bureau of Economic Research
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paxson, Christina
1960 births
Columbia Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni
Labor economists
Living people
Presidents of Brown University
Swarthmore College alumni
Princeton University faculty
Women heads of universities and colleges