Katharine Abraham elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Katharine Abraham, Professor of Economics and Survey Methodology and long-time MPRC Faculty Associate, was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AMACAD) during the most recent induction in Spring 2020.
Professor Abraham's research over the years has focused on numerous complex topics, including the contingent workforce, work and retirement decisions of older Americans, labor market adjustment over the business cycle, unemployment and job vacancies, and the measurement of economic activity, among other topics. She is the current President of the Society of Labor Economists and Chair of the Conference on Research in Income and Wealth. She also serves as an advisor to the Congressional Budget Office, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, and the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In 2016, then President Barack Obama appointed her to chair the bipartisan Commission on Evidence-based Policymaking. From 2011 to 2013 she was a member of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers, and from 1993 to 2001 she served as commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Dr. Abraham was one of the founding members of the Maryland Population Research Center in 2002, and she was deeply involved in the establishment of the American Time Use Survey (now IPUMS Time Use) and the Time Use conference sponsored by MPRC approximately every two years.
Academy President David W. Oxtoby said, “These new members are united by a place in history and by an opportunity to shape the future through the Academy’s work to advance the public good.” Dr. Abraham's 2020 cadre includes Anita Hill, Eric Holder, and Lawrence R. Jacobs.
"The news that I had been elected to the Academy came as a completely unexpected surprise," Abraham said. “I am so honored to have been chosen to be a part of this distinguished group."