You wear many hats as an author, teacher, and Director of the Social Mobility Lab. Can you share a bit about your journey, both personal and professional, that brought you to this work?
The through line in all my work is to help people move up in life, like others once helped me. I am one of the fortunate people who was able to move up from the bottom rung of the economic ladder towards the top. My mom raised my brother, sister, and me largely by herself in various row houses in Chelsea, Massachusetts and trailers in rural Pennsylvania. I benefited from food stamps, welfare, Medicaid, Pell grants, student loans, and numerous other government benefits. While I worked hard, my success would not be possible without the kindness and efforts of countless teachers, mentors, social workers, friends, family, non-profit workers, and individuals — many of whom will never know their impact on my life… and an incredible amount of good fortune.
What first sparked your passion for exploring social mobility and opportunity? Was there a particular experience or moment that set you on this path?
Throughout my life, I’ve wondered “how did I end up here?” when others I knew and loved had completely different life experiences and outcomes than I had. As a society, we typically ascribe success to hard work, but I know I didn’t work any harder than my mom working behind the bar or my brother working in a factory, or my sister driving trucks. At some point, I wanted answers to this question of why some move up while others don’t and what does it mean to move up anyway. So independently, I went on a learning journey to understand not just for myself but also in the context of the work I was doing with non-profits and foundations.
Your work often focuses on translating research into actionable steps that people can use in their everyday lives. Can you describe some of your key findings, and what feels most meaningful to you about this work?
Rather than any one finding, it’s more about the journey. The act of reflecting on important questions related to our lives is so important. Knowledge is power. For example, I used to resent people who weren’t compassionate to the struggles of others, but learning about Fundamental Attribution Error helped me see that we are wired to see our individual agency and actions as more important factors vs. things beyond our control. Or that we are more aware of the headwinds (challenges) we face than our tailwinds that push us forward. In my own life, I learned how important a “buffering adult” is to help children make sense of the challenges they’re facing or the “pygmalion effect” where higher expectation and advantages were given to me, probably because I read as a child and my mom called me her “Little Professor” — thinking I was the smart one. Or most recently, I learned about the name pronunciation effect, which notes that having a simpler to pronounce name — like Bob — has advantages and may have impacted how often I got called on in class. There is just so, so much research out there that can help us understand not just generally how we can help people move up in life but specifically help us understand our own journey and that of others. This is all so meaningful because it has the potential to profoundly change how we see and support each other.
What drew you to City College and the Colin Powell School, and how has working with our students shaped your perspective compared to other places you’ve been?
Initially, it was a connection with the former Dean, Andy Rich, who was such an incredible champion and partner in this work. But really what makes CPS the perfect home for the Lab are our students. They are living this journey right now. We have the opportunity to learn with, from and for them. Teaching the Economics of Social Mobility has really shown me the promise and the potential of this work to make a difference in real time. When I share research about social mobility with them, the knowledge is practical and hits home. I can see them seeing their journey and potential in a whole new light — and that is just wonderful. At the Social Mobility Lab, we say the only reason to study social mobility is to create more of it — and that starts right here.
Looking ahead, what projects or goals are you most excited about, whether in research, teaching, or expanding the reach of the Social Mobility Lab?
Where to start? First off, we will be kicking off our Brown Bag Lunch and Learn sessions with our new round of grantees — who represent ten different colleges and universities across the country. I can’t wait to learn more about the important questions they are exploring. We also just launched Ideas for Moving Up, which is a year-long campaign to share key findings with students, faculty, and staff that they can apply right now. We have several partnerships in the works with our Journalism program and others. We hope to launch our first publication, The Journal of Up, which is designed to be a more accessible journal for our students and the communities they represent. And of course there is our second annual Social Mobility Summit which will be in April. Finally, we’re holding our first Social Mobility tour which will bring students and partners on a tour of our community to see cultural, historical, and architectural landmarks demonstrating awe-inspiring examples of social mobility all around us.
Finally, from your vantage point, what makes the Colin Powell School such a special community? What should people know about what happens here?
I’m consistently blown away by how kind and caring this community is. Everyone is so committed to helping our students achieve their potential. These are incredibly challenging times and this is definitely hard work, yet everyday people come here to make the world a better place; one student, one class, one day at a time. It’s a truly inspiring place to be.
