Dr. Cecilia Ayón’s research focuses on how immigration policies and sociopolitical climates shape the health, well-being, and family processes of Latinx immigrant communities. As a community-engaged researcher, Dr. Ayón specializes in studying hard-to-reach populations, particularly Latinx immigrant children and families. Drawing from her lived experience as the daughter of Mexican immigrants and her training as...

Dr. Sharon Oselin’s research focuses on using real-world accounts and field research to understand topics surrounding crime, the criminal-legal system, prisoner reentry, deviance, gender and sexuality, urban conditions, organizations, and culture. As a professor of Public Policy & Sociology and Director of the Presley Center of Crime & Justice Studies, she examines how policies, social...

Dr. Ran Wei’s research focuses on using data science to understand how climate change affects children's health and their access to emergency medical care. She currently leads a major project funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where she integrates information from 13 different data sources to identify neighborhoods where children are most at...

Dr. Mehdi Nemati’s research in environmental economics and policy uses causal inference and large-scale data, including administrative and satellite sources, to study water systems, climate adaptation, affordability, groundwater depletion, and land subsidence. He currently leads the Water Dialogue Lab at UC Riverside, a lab dedicated to advancing research and policy solutions to inform decision-making across...

Dr. Kurt Schwabe’s research focuses on economic issues associated with water use and water affordability, agricultural production, urban water conservation, ecosystem services, and environmental regulation. He currently serves as a Senior Fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California Water Policy Center, where he helps identify, develop, and carry out research priorities important to the...

Dr. Robynn Cox’s research examines the intersections of crime, health, labor, housing, and social and racial inequality, with a focus on the social, economic, and health consequences of mass incarceration policies. She is also a faculty affiliate at the School of Public Policy’s Presley Center for Crime & Justice Studies and Immediate Past President for...

Dr. Andy Crosby’s work centers on public budgeting and financial management, intergovernmental relations, and survey methodology. In January 2026, Dr. Crosby co-authored Public Budgeting and Financial Management: Getting on Track, published by Routledge. The textbook provides an accessible, applied introduction to public budgeting for students who do not have prior experience in economics or statistics...

Dr. Qingfang Wang’s research examines how inclusive entrepreneurship ecosystems can be intentionally designed to promote community wealth creation and equitable economic growth. Over two decades of scholarship, her work has focused on how race, gender, immigration, and place shape entrepreneurial opportunity in underserved communities. Drawing on comparative and multi-city research, Dr. Wang shows that entrepreneurship...

Dr. Wei Kang’s research focuses on spatial data science, housing, and spatial inequality—using innovative methods to understand the outcomes of affordable housing policies like low-income housing tax credit programs and inclusionary zoning programs. In early January, Dr. Kang co-authored a new study in Health Affairs examining the link between the Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) program...