Alvin Christian

I am an Assistant Professor of Public Policy at the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy at the University at Albany, SUNY. I study how people make consequential decisions and how institutions and their policies shape those decisions. My primary work focuses on education: how students access and use support services, how information and beliefs shape schooling and labor market choices, and how educational organizations make decisions under uncertainty. I also study family and social issues, particularly domestic violence and household decision-making.

My research has been supported by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) and published in academic journals such as Education Finance and Policy, Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, American Educational Research Journal, and Oxford Economic Papers. It has been cited in White House reports and featured by media outlets such as The 74. My parents do not read it because it's "too long," but they say it looks professional and they're proud of me.

I am 100% public-school educated. I earned my BA and MA in Economics from the CUNY City College of New York and my PhD in Economics and Public Policy from the University of Michigan. Before graduate school, I worked as a research assistant at Brown University and MDRC.