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For 2005-6
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For the Placement of Graduates of the CNISS Certificate Program
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The
2001 Inaugural Class:
Eliana
Balla
- Albania
Eliana defended her dissertation successfully 11/5. She has accepted a
position at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.
Research
Interests
Eliana's research examined determinants of bilateral aid allocation
and the effectiveness of development aid for recipients' domestic
investment.
A second line of Eliana's research dealt with long-run institutional
change comparing the credible commitment problems of rulers in France
and
the Ottoman Empire during the early-modern age.
Kelley
O' Bryan Gary
- United States
Kelley is a fifth year Ph.D. student in Economics.
Research Interests: Social
Science History,
Political Economy
Kelley's research utilizes modern analytical methods to illuminate
complex sequences of historical events. One project analyzes the U.S.
secession
crises of 1860-1861. Another project analyzes the process of country
formation.
Vahe
Laskavyan
- Armenia
Vahe accepted a position as Assistant Professor in the Economics
Department
at Ohio State University. Vahe's research topics include Industrial
Organization, Corporate Finance, and Governance, Transition, and
Developing Economies. He is currently teaching a course on managerial
economics which applies mathematics and statistics to the managerial
decision-making process.
René
Lindstädt
- Germany
René successfully defended his dissertation in 2005. For the
2006
academic year, René has accepted a
tenure-track position as Assistant Professor of Political Economy in
the Department of Political Science at SUNY-Stony Brook. He will be
teaching classes in political economy, public policy and political
methodology.
Gina
Marie Yannitell Reinhardt
- United States
After successfully defending her dissertation in 2005, Gina began
teaching as
Assistant Professor in the Fall of 2005 at the George H.W. Bush Public
Policy
School at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. She is
teaching statistical methods, quantitative methods,
public policy analysis, and international development to students
in the Masters of Public Service Administration and Masters of
International Affairs Program.
She specializes in
political
economy, game theory, and statistical methods of examining
decision-making. Currently, she is working on several projects
investigating decision-making under undertainty, including a project
funded by the National Science Foundation to ascertain how public
perceptions of risk
and uncertainty have changed since the occurrence of Hurricanes
Katrina, Rita, and Wilma. Her previous work can be seen in Legislative
Studies Quarterly and the Review of Development Economics.
The
Class of 2002:
Janice
Compton
- Canada
Janice successfully defended her dissertation in 2005. She accepted a
position at the University of Manitoba where she is a continuing
lecturer teaching micro and macro economics. She is researching issues
concerning family institutions. Namely, how time preference affects
marriage and divorce, how changes in family structure affect the
provision of child related public goods, and how family responsibilties
influence migration behavior.
Janice's
webpage link
Ryan
Compton
- Canada
Ryan successfully completed his dissertation in 2005. He accepted a
position at the University of Manitoba as an assistant professor,
teaching all levels of macro economics
(intro, intermediate, and graduate). He is researching financial market
institutions and growth
as well as coauthoring a paper on Political Instability and Economic
Growth.
Ryan's
webpage link
Meg
Rincker- United States
Meg is an ABD student in the Department of Political Science. She
graduated
from Illinois Wesleyan University in 1998, majoring in Political
Science
and minoring in English. In May 2002 she received her Master's Degree
in
Political Science from Washington University.
Research Interests:
Meg's
dissertation
examines whether decentralization
presents a new avenue for women's representation. Specifically, she
examines
two questions. First, does decentralization to the regional level
increase
the number of women in elected and appointed offices? Second, does the
presence of more women in local office lead to better representation of
women's interests?
Eric
Rovie- United States
For the 2005-2006 academic year, Eric is Visiting Instructor in the
Philosophy Department at this undergraduate alma mater, Georgia State
University in Atlanta, Georgia. While teaching there, Eric's
responsibilities include core introductory courses in philosophy as
well as advanced undergraduate courses, including Honors sections
of several courses and the supervision of several Honors students'
theses and essay contest applications.
Prema
Thirupathy - Singapore - Pthirupathy@gwbmail.wustl.edu
Prema has just completed her first year as a Ph.D. student with the
George Warren Brown School of Social Work. In 1992, she obtained a B.A.
in Social Work and Geography from the National University of Singapore
and an M.A. in Social Policy from the University of York (UK) in 1996.
From 1992-1999, she was with the Ministry of Community Development
in
Singapore,
first as a child protection officer and later as a Deputy Director of
the
Community and Social Sector Development Division. In 1997, she spent a
year in Ghana (W.Africa) as a volunteer with the Singapore
International
Foundation where she worked on a research project assessing the impact
of International aid on the well being of Ghanian children. Prior to
coming
to St. Louis, Prema worked as a part-time tutor and research assistant
in the Department of Social Work and Psychology in Singapore.
Research Interests:
Her
research interests
deal with the relationship
between government and nonprofit organizations in the provision of
welfare
services. She is interested in studying government-nonprofit
partnership
and the effect of partnership on the resultant roles and behavior of
nonprofit
organizations.
The
Class of 2003:
Raul
Andrade - Peru - andrade@wustl.edu
Raul is in his fourth year in the Ph.D. program in economics at
Washington University. He holds an M.A. in Economics from Washington
University
and a B.A. in Economics from Universidad Catolica del Peru. His
specialities
include Labor Economics and Development Economics.
Research Interests:
Currently, his work in labor economics relates to models of the family,
specifically, how social norms affect the acheivement of
Pareto-efficiency
in the household and the effects of divorce on marriage-specific
investment.
His work in development economics relates to community management of
forestry resources
and the relationship between income inequality and economic
development.
Catrina
Adams - United States -catraino@artsci.wustl.edu
Catrina is a fifth-year graduate student in Anthropology, specializing
in paleoethnobotany (the study of plant use in the past). She received
her B.A. in Biology from St. Mary's College of Maryland in 2001 and her
M.A. from Washington University in 2003.
Research Interests:
She is currently economic intensification in Orkney, Scotland during
the Viking/Medieval transition (c.900-1100AD). She is interested in the
interactions between economic intensification, urbanization, and
political and ideological change taking place during this period.
Changes involving agricultural methods, fuel use and
procurement,staple good production and trade, inheritance practices and
property
rights are among the subjects of her study.
Hui-Feng(Tim)Hsu - Taiwan
Hui-Feng took a teaching position in a leading academic institution in
China in 2004. He got his
LLB and LLM degree at Chinese Culture University in 1991 and
1996.
He practiced law for five years before he came to the U.S. in 1998. He
also gave a lecture at National Open University in the spring of 1996.
In 2001, he got an LLM degree at Indiana University-Bloomington. He
also
served as the President of APALSA at Indiana University School of Law
in
2000 and President of TGSA at Washington University in 2002.
Research Interests:
What the
nature and end of
law is; the interaction
between law and economics (the conflict between justice and efficiency)
and how to properly apply economic approach to law. Hui-fengs master
thesis focused on the economic analysis of tort
liability. His dissertation examined the limitation of
economic
analysis of law from the perspective of the nature and the end of
law.
Rene
Olate - Chile - rolate@gwbmail.wustl.edu
René was the CNISS Ansehl fellow while pursuing his coursework
requirements. Currently, he is a research associate for the Global
Services Institute at the Center for Social Development at Washington
University where he is conducting cross-national research about youth
volunteer programs in 13 Latin American and Caribbean countries. His
research includes work on local level institutions, volunteering, and
capacity building.
Kevin
Shaver - United States - shaver@wustl.edu
Kevin is a third year student in the economics Ph.D. program. He holds
a B.A. in Economics and Philosophy from the University of Kansas, as
well
as an M.A. in Economics from Washington University.
Prior to his arrival at Washington University, Kevin worked with the
Hartford Financial Services Group developing and managing insurance
products.
Research Interests:
Kevin is currently working in areas related to: 1)industrial
organization;
(2)public finance; (3)insurance; (4)econometrics; and
(5)institutions.
The
Class of 2004:
Santiago
Amaya - Columbia - samayago@artsci.wustl.edu
Santiago is a second-year Ph.D. student in the
Philosophy-Neuroscience-Psychology
program in the Philosophy Department. He holds an M.A. in Philosophy
from
Universidad Nacional de Colombia, and a B.A. in Philosophy from
Universidad
de los Andes in Bogota. His areas of interest are philosophy of
psychology,
philosophy of the social sciences and theories of rationality.
Research Interests:
His research focuses on the relation between theories of practical
rationality and psychological accounts of decision-making. He is
particularly
interested in the prospects and limitations of the use of decision and
game-theoretic tools for the modeling of human decision-making. He
believes
this evaulation requires gathering insights from philosophy,
psychology,
and methodological discussions within the social sciences.
Apart from the above, he
maintains a lively
interest in Ancient philosophy,
specifically in Aristotle and the Greek rhetorical tradition.
James
Butikofer - United States - jabutiko@wustl.edu
James is a fourth year Ph.D. student in the economics department. He
holds a B.A. degree in economics from Idaho State University and a M.A.
degree in economics from Washington University in St. Louis
Research Interests:
James is interested in government health policies and programs and
econometrics. He is currently studying the Children's Health Insurance
Program, and how the governments decision to charge premiums effects
parent's
decisions to enroll their child in the program. He is also interested
in
other sources of care for the poor and needy besides government
programs.
Art Carden - United States - carden@rhodes.edu
Art recently completed his Ph.D. under the direction of John Nye and
Nobel Laureate Douglass C. North. Support from CNISS has allowed him to
present his research at numerous conferences. His research has won
awards from the Missouri Valley Economic Associationand the Society for
the Development of Austrian Economics. Art will join the faculty of
Rhodes College in the
Fall.
Dolly
Daftary - India - ddaftary@wustl.edu
Dolly holds an M.A. in Social Work from the Tata Institute of Social
Sciences, Bombay, with specialization in Urban and Rural Community
Development.
She has a B.A. with honors in Economics from Delhi University. She
worked
in India with a non-profit organization before joining Washington
University,
facilitating the implementation of food-security programs in rural
communities
through civil society and local government partnerships.
Research Interests:
Dolly's research is focused on the interaction of community groups
in determining local development. Her work is currently centered on
natural
resources as common property resources, and collective action in
subsistence
agriculture communities. She is interested in how actors' resource
endowments
impact their ability to change institutions, and how institutional
dominance
changes over time. Other research interests include social networks,
structure
and agency, and understanding feedback and dynamism in social
processes.
Jeremy
Meiners - United States - meiners@wustl.edu
Jeremy is a third year Ph.D. student in the economics department. He
received a B.S. degree in economics and history from Illinois State
University
in 1998 and also holds an M.A. degree in economics from Washington
University
in St. Louis
Research Interests:
Jeremy's interests fall within the fields of economic history,
econometrics,
and institutional development. He is currently researching the effect
of
state and fedearal law on agricultural performance and capital
investments
within the United States. Specifically, he is focused on how these
policies
influence agricultuale drainage in the midwest and sugar cane
production
in Louisiana.
The 2005 Class
Guido
Cataife - Argentina - gcataife@wustl.edu
Guido is an Argentinian second year Ph.D. student in the Economics
department. He holds a bachelor degree in Economics from Universidad de
Buenos Aires and a masters
degree in historical research from Universidad de San Andres. His main
interest
is in formal Political Economy.
Research Interests:
Guido's research focuses mainly on the intersection of Political
Sciences and Economics.
He is currently working on two projects: political mass action and
overthrowing of governments in Latin America, and bargaining under
military threats.
Njeri
Kagotho - Kenya - nkagotho@wustl.edu
Njeri holds a B.A.(honors)from the University of Nairobi,
Kenya, and an MSW from Washington University in St. Louis. She is
currently
a Ph.D. student at the George Warren School of Social Work. Her
research
focus is on the social and economic adaptation of immigrant and refugee
populations within host societies. Currently, she is examining
institutional
barriers to accessing financial services for immigrant groups in the
United States.
David
Speetzen - United States - ddspeetz@wustl.edu
David's main interests are social/political philosophy, ethics, applied
ethics, moral psychology, and early modern philosophy. Most recently,
he has examined issues surrounding international relations, especially
war, humanitarian intervention, human rights, and democratization.
Amy
Wilson - United States - amwilson@artsci.wustl.edu
Amy completed a B.A. in philosophy from the University of Arkansas at
Little
Rock in 1997, and a B.S. in biology there in 1999. She completed a M.A.
in Political Science at Texas State University in the Spring of 2004,
and in the Fall of that year began working on her Ph.D. in philosophy
at Washington University.
Research Interests:
She is interested in ethical issues from a variety of perspectives. Her
primary interests
are in social/political issues like war, globalization, poverty, and
foreign policy. She is also interested in environmental ethics, the
evolution of ethical behaviors and beliefs, and secularly educating
children in ethics. She is additional working in metaethics,
particularly the metaphysical concerns about moral properties.
Jennifer
Wistrand - United States - jswistra@artsci.wustl.edu
Jennifer graduated from Northwestern University in 2000 with a BA in
Anthropology
and French. She is currently working on a PhD in Anthropology at
Washington University
in St. Louis.
Research Interests:
She is interested in the former Soviet Muslim republics of the Caucasus
and Central Asia, and she intends to conduct her dissertation
research on Azerbaijan's public education system, paying particular
attention
to the influence the government's policies toward Islam, ethnic
nationalism, and foreign organizations, such as Western education NGOs,
may be having on the way
the public schools train and encourage their students to be Azeri
citizens.
The 2006 Class
Michael
Fitzhugh - United States - mlfitzhu@artsci.wustl.edu
Mike specializes in early modern English history. His dissertation
research focuses
on the beginnings of the late seventeenth-century administrative
revolution, specifically on the aristocratic mental framework of honor
often used by bureaucrats
as they conducted business, which encouraged an extreme individualism
that seems intuitively
at odds with efficient administration. Mike has secondary interests in
premodern Chinese
intellectual history as well as the philosophy of history and how
theories from the social sciences can inform historians'
interpretations.
Ji
Yan - China - jyan@artsci.wustl.edu
Ji has been a Ph.D. student in the Department of Economics since 2004.
He has an M.A. degree with honors in Economics from Fudan University,
Shanghai, China. Ji's research interests mainly include public finance,
political economy, growth and development. He is interested in subjects
such as fiscal competition, the
involvement of parents in local educational systems and its welfare
effect and the transitions of political institutions (especially fiscal
decentralization). Currently, he is studying public-private partnership
in public goods
provision and its relation with local economic growth.
Benjamin
J. Lough - United States - blough@gwbmail.wustl.edu
Ben received his bachelors in sociology and MSW from Brigham Young
University and is currently pursuing his PhD at the George Warren Brown
School of Social Work. His primary research interests are in
participatory development, local governance and comparative social
policy.

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