We are thrilled to share that Faculty Director Lauren Russell earned the 2023 Raymond Vernon Memorial Award, presented by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management (APPAM). APPAM selected Dr. Russell and her co-author, Dr. Taylor Odle, for their research, “The Impact of Reverse Transfer Associate Degrees on Education and Labor Market Outcomes,” published in the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management (JPAM). Their research examines reverse transfer associate degrees, which combine four-year and community college credits and are retroactively awarded to bachelor’s degree seekers. Using administrative data from Tennessee, their study challenges current descriptive work that reports a large benefit of these degrees, noting that they have minimal impact on student academic and labor market outcomes and suggest that associate degree returns are from human capital gains rather than signaling. Dr. Russell and Dr. Odle will be recognized for the award at the annual APPAM Fall Research Conference in November in Atlanta.
