No. 174, November 23rd, 2009
Please submit information as you would like it written to Renee Hoffman (rmh6@cornell.edu). Read on and enjoy!

Monday, November 23rd, 11:30-1pm, B32 Warren - CaRDI's fall semester Regional Research Roundtable Discussion
Tuesday, December 1st, 12:15pm, B32 Warren - Graduate Student Brown Bag Seminar: Andrea Woodward, "Beyond School Lunch: The Changing Nutritional and Ecological Food Environment in Schools."
Friday, December 4th, 3pm, B32 Warren - Rural New York Seminar - Positioning New York's Rural Communities: Vision, Policy, and Action in a Regional Context

Non-Dept. Seminars
PAM - 4 Job Candidate Seminars
PAM
Call for Papers, Abstracts and Panels

Miscellaneous News

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Department Meetings and Events

To View the entire schedule of Department meetings, seminars, and events, please click here. This schedule is frequently updated.

Meetings: Monday, November 23rd, 11:30-1pm, B32 Warren - CaRDI's fall semester Regional Research Roundtable Discussion
We will provide a *catered lunch*.

The theme this semester will be:
"Fair Trade Opportunities for New York State: A Case Study of the Orange County Onion Industry"*

The discussion will feature:
Mary Jo Dudley, Director of the Cornell Farmworker Program
Caroline McInerney, CFP student intern and junior in the ILR school,
Lance Compa, School of Industrial and Labor Relations, and
Miguel Gomez,  Applied Economics & Management .

We will address questions such as:
How do domestic fair trade models work?  How can this type of model improve the living and working conditions of farmworkers? What is unique about the Orange County Onion Industry?   How could one determine potential marketing niches for fair trade onions?

Please click the following link to register (so that we may order an adequate amount of food and beverages for lunch):

<http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dDY1dVQza1FqX3l0QVdfZ1NCbmhSdGc6MA>http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dDY1dVQza1FqX3l0QVdfZ1NCbmhSdGc6MA

Tuesday, December 1st, 12:15pm, B32 Warren - Graduate Student Brown Bag Seminar: Andrea Woodward, "Beyond School Lunch: The Changing Nutritional and Ecological Food Environment in Schools."
Friday, December 4th, 3pm, B32 Warren - Rural New York Seminar - Positioning New York's Rural Communities: Vision, Policy, and Action in a Regional Context

Promotions, Awards, Grants and Honors

Publications

CaRDI Publications:
All of our publications are available on the CaRDI website at
http://www.cardi.cornell.edu

In October, Issue #34 of our Rural New York Minute series was released,
entitled "Community Awareness of Wildlife Disease", by Darrick Evensen,
Dan Decker, and Bill Siemer, Cornell University.

This month we publish our 35th issue of the Minute, entitled "School
Consolidation: What do New Yorkers Think?", by John Sipple and Robin
Blakely, Cornell University.

The November Issue (#32) of the Research & Policy Brief Series was
released, entitled "How can schools help communities in NYS?", by John
Sipple, Hope Casto, and Robin Blakely, Cornell University.

Our next Research & Policy Brief (Issue #33) will be released in
mid-January, and is entitled "Estimating the Job Impact of Public
Investment in Bio-fuel Plants" by Susan Christopherson and Zachary
Sivertsen, Cornell University .

Our two latest CaRDI Reports are also now available:

Issue #9, entitled "Economic Development In New York State: An
Overview of the Project Development Process", by David Kay and Djahane
Salehabadi, Cornell University.
Issue #10, entitled "Rural NYS in Perspective: A Chartbook from the
Empire State Poll, 2009" by Robin M. Blakely and Andrea C. Elmore,
Cornell University.

All of our publications are available on the CaRDI website at
http://www.cardi.cornell.edu

 

Eloundou-Enyegue, PM. and A. Rehman (2009). 'Growing up global and equal? Inequality trends among world children, 1980-2005', /Journal of Children and Poverty/,15:2,95 — 118

Presentations and Recent Travels

Mary Kritz and Doug Gurak participated in the United Nations 8th Coordination Meeting on International Migration At United Nations headquarters, New York, 16-17 November 2009.  The meeting's objectives were (a) to assess the impact of economic and financial crisis on international migration, (b) to review initiatives to strengthen the evidence base on international migration and development, and (c) to exchange information among United Nations entities and other relevant international organizations on current and planned activities in the area of international migration and development. Meeting information (agenda, participant list, contributed papers, etc.) is available online at http://www.un.org/esa/population/meetings/eighthcoord2009/eighthcoord2009.htm

 

Parfait Eloundou-Enyegue traveled to NYC to attend a Board meeting at the Gutmacher Institute (October 22-23). Parfait Eloundou-Enyegue traveled to Brown University (Sociology, Population Studies Training Center) and gave a seminar on "Dividends from Demographic Transitions: Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa"

Workshops and Conferences

Job Opportunities

CALS Career Development Newsletter, "CALS Jobs, Internships, and Events", is now available on line at: http://www.cals.cornell.edu/cals/current/career/newsletter/

USAID Careers link (http://www.usaid.gov/careers/applicant.html)

APLU Careers - APLU is the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities. For employment opportunities, click here.

Academic Careers Online, since 1998, is an academic job site where universities and colleges in the US, Canada, and around the globe, advertise faculty, adjunct, post doc, library, endowed chairs, administrative and senior management jobs. There is no charge for our applicant services. You can: (1) Search current job openings (and remember, new ones are added daily), (2) Post your resume for employers to review, and/or (3) Receive e-mail alerts when matching jobs are posted. To search jobs and/or open an applicant account at Academic Careers Online then select "Applicants Enter Here." Your resume will be visible within seconds to employers. If you are part of a search committee you can also post your job opening.

North Carolina State University - The Department of Sociology and Anthropology at North Carolina State University is accepting applications for an Assistant Professor (tenure-track) appointment to begin August 16, 2010.  The successful candidate should be prepared to teach at least one course in our graduate core offerings in methods/analysis. Preference will be given to candidates who have research and teaching interests in inequality, especially race/ethnicity.  Candidates whose research interests are consistent with the university’s initiatives in promoting citizens' well being or protecting the environment will receive top priority. 
 
Candidate qualifications for the position include (1) a Ph.D. in Sociology, (2) a strong record of research and publication with an excellent record of extramural research funding or promise of such funding, and (3) potential to mentor graduate students and teaching excellence at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
 
To apply please visit:  http://jobs.ncsu.edu/applicants/Central?quickFind=84904 .    
You will be asked to upload a curriculum vitae and a letter of application describing your research and teaching interests. Final candidates will be asked to provide a minimum of three letters of reference within two weeks from notification.
 
North Carolina State University is the largest public university in North Carolina and is located in the heart of the Research Triangle offering excellent area amenities; visit our website at http://sociology.chass.ncsu.edu/.  Formal screening of applications will begin December 1, 2009 and will continue until the position is filled. NCSU is an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer and welcomes all persons without regard to sexual orientation.  For ADA accommodation, contact Human Resources at (919) 515-2135.

Fellowships, Internships and Other Funding Opportunities

Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies - Funding Opportunities for Faculty: Visit their website (www.einaudi.cornell.edu/funding/displaysearch.asp) to search all international research funding opportunities for faculty. (The Population and Development Library (Room 12, Warren Hall) has copies of the Einaudi Center's recent publication, "Post-Doctoral Opportunities in International Studies." Library Hours are Monday 2:00-5:00, Tuesday 12:30-4:30, Thursday 8:30-5:00.

NSF and Other Summer Undergrad and Grad  School and Post Doc Funding
FOR UNDERGRADUATES:
Paid Summer 2010 Undergrad Research Placements!!!
Over 400 programs -Undergraduate REU and Other Summer Research
Opportunities: See www.PathwaysToScience.org/SummerResearch.asp
<http://www.PathwaysToScience.org/SummerResearch.asp>

FOR THOSE CONSIDERING GRAD SCHOOL:
Opportunities at over 150 colleges and universities:
www.PathwaysToScience.org/Grad.asp
<http://www.PathwaysToScience.org/Grad.asp>

Professional Development and Support: Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP): see www.agep.us <http://www.agep.us>

For Financial Support in Graduate School Opportunities:
Bridges, GK-12, IGERT and NSF Grad Research Fellowship programs provide generous stipend ($30,000 per year) and tuition support for students through the National Science Foundation:
www.PathwaysToScience.org/Grad.asp
<http://www.PathwaysToScience.org/Grad.asp>

FOR POST-DOC OPPORTUNITIES: www.PathwaysToScience.org/PostDocs.asp
<http://www.PathwaysToScience.org/PostDocs.asp>  

 

Cornell Plantations is hiring 8 interns for summer, 2010.
These internships pay $9 an hour, 39 hours a week, for 12 weeks.

For more information keep reading or go to www.cornellplantations.org or
www.plantations.cornell.edu

Three interns will work in the botanic gardens, 2 in the natural areas, 2 in our education department, and 1 in the wildflower garden. The internship starts May 25 and ends August 13.  Most positions have a Monday - Friday schedule; daily hours vary, but are something like 7 - 330 or 730 - 4.  The education internships will probably have some weekend hours, depending on program needs.

Interns will work in their regular areas Tue - Friday but on Mondays all
interns get together for Learning Mondays. Learning Monday include
field trips, workshops, mini-seminars, &c.  Topics might include botanical
illustration, tree-climbing skills with the arborists, garden design,
field trips to local wetlands and bogs, &c.  From Tue - Friday interns
focus on very practical, hands-on work so they can truly gain skills and
experience working with plants.

Some sort of writing project that documents the summer is required.  This
can be just about anything that makes the intern reflect back on what they
have been learning and doing during the internship.  In the past interns
have created blogs, sketch diaries, original art, field journals, and
comic books.  Serious creativity is encouraged. These projects are
presented on Farewell Friday by all interns to all staff in an informal
trade-show format.

Plantations sees our internship program as a learning opportunity.
We are looking for applicants who can contribute to and gain from a summer at Plantations.  We want your experience at Plantations to be a very worthwhile part of your time at Cornell.

Students apply on line: http://www.plantations.cornell.edu/learning/internship

The application deadline is February 12, 2010.

All applications are reviewed by a multi-person hiring team.
Our goal is to have the selecting, interviewing, and hiring process
complete by spring break.

We are unable to accept students who are graduating and leaving Cornell in May, 2010.  Students completing undergraduate work and returning in the fall to start graduate studies ARE eligible.  Summer interns must be currently enrolled or accepted Cornell University undergraduate or graduate students.

 

ANNOUNCING  PARK BREAK 2010:
Spend Spring Break Learning in a National Park

Park Break is an all-expenses-paid, park-based seminar for graduate students who are thinking about a career in park management or park-related research and education. Park Break puts you in a national park unit for up to a week's worth of field and classroom activities in close collaboration with park scientists and scholars, managers and administrators, and partner organizations.  Now in its third year, Park Break lets you experience first-hand the challenges of managing a national park.

A typical Park Break includes: Presentations by several top-level personnel at the park, such as the superintendent, assistant superintendent, division chiefs, resource managers, staff subject-matter experts (e.g., biologists, historians, etc.).
Presentations by outside scientists/scholars who are currently working in the park.

Presentations by local NGOs, elected officials, personnel from other parks, etc., who are working with the host park or on issues similar to those facing the host park. One or more field sessions in the park that illustrate the theme and issues being discussed.  An excursion into the surrounding community to discuss relevant issues. Sound good?  Go to http://www.georgewright.org/parkbreak to find out more!  The deadline for applications is January 11, 2010.

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Also, for a news feed on parks and protected areas, check out Park Wire, http://www.georgewright.org/park_wire_feed

Student Activities

Non-Dept. Seminars

PAM - 4 Job Candidate Seminars: Following are the announcements for 4 upcoming PAM Job Candidate seminars. In order not to clutter up people’s mailboxes, I will send another reminder only on the day of the seminar. If you would like to meet with the candidate please sign up to meet on the schedule on the front counter. (If you need to email someone, email Tina, not Lois). Thank you.

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Fuhua Zhai, Post-doctoral Research Scholar, Institute of Human Development and Social Change, New York University

 

Wednesday, Dec 2, 1:15-2:45pm, The Rushmore Room, MVR 114

 

Head Start and Urban Children’s School Readiness: A Birth Cohort Study in 18 Cities

 

We used longitudinal data from a birth cohort study, the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS), to investigate the links between Head Start and school readiness in a large and diverse sample of urban children at age five (N=2,803; 18 cities). We found that Head Start attendance was associated with enhanced cognitive ability and social competence and reduced attention problems, but not internalizing or externalizing behavior problems. These findings were robust to model specifications (including models with city-fixed effects and propensity scoring matching). Furthermore, the effects of Head Start varied by the reference group. Head Start was associated with improved cognitive development when compared to parental care or other non-parental care, as well as improved social competence (compared to parental care) and reduced attention problems (compared to other non-parental care). In contrast, compared to children who attended pre-kindergarten or other center-based care, Head Start was not associated with cognitive gains but improved social competence and reduced attention and externalizing behavior problems (compared to other center-based care). These associations were not moderated by child gender or race/ethnicity.

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Robert White, PhD candidate in Sociology, University of Wisconsin, Madison

 

Friday, Dec 4, 10-11:30am, The Rushmore Room, MVR 114

 

Sample Selection Bias in the Pathways to Adult Health Inequalities

 

Sample selection bias is a chronic problem in longitudinal studies that is particularly problematic for studies concerning the relationship between health and socio-economic status. This paper adopts two alternate methods for handling sample selection bias attributable to survey attrition and item non-response. Both methods are applied to examine the magnitude of bias in the effects of childhood cognition and behavior on the adult socio-economic gradient in health. A method for sample selection correction with multiple imputation for item non-response is implemented to account for different sources of sample selection bias over time. Estimates of a life course model of health and socioeconomic attainment demonstrate that sample selection bias inflates estimates of socioeconomic gradients. The proposed correction for sample selection bias also suggests that the effects of early child non-cognitive skills rather than cognitive skills may play an important role in the early

life origins of adult socioeconomic gradients.

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Laura Tach, Ph.D. candidate in Sociology and Social Policy, Harvard University

 

Monday, Dec 7, 10-11:30am, MVR 157

 

More than Bricks and Mortar: Neighborhood Frames, Social Processes, and the Mixed-Income Redevelopment of a Public Housing Project

Seminar Announcement F0

Policy initiatives to demonstrate poverty through mixed-income redevelopment were motivated in part by the desire to reduce social isolation and social disorganization in high-poverty neighborhoods. This article examines whether the presence of higher-income neighbors decreased social isolation or improved social organization in a Boston public housing project that was redeveloped into a HOPE VI mixed-income community. Based on in-depth interviews and neighborhood observation, I find that it was the lower-income former public housing residents who were primarily involved in creating

neighborhood-based social ties, providing and receiving social support, and enforcing social control within the neighborhood, rather than the higher-income newcomers. This variation in neighborhood engagement stemmed from the different ways that long-term and newer residents perceived and interpreted their neighborhood surroundings. These differences were generated by residents’ comparisons of current and past neighborhood environments and by neighborhood reputations. Residents’ perceptions of place may thus improve social organization in high-poverty neighborhoods and, more

generally, whether changes in neighborhood structural characteristics translate into changes in social dynamics.

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David Deming, PhD candidate,Kennedy School at Harvard University

 

Thursday, Dec 10, 10-11:30am, MVR 153

 

Better Schools, Less Crime?

 

I estimate the effect of attending a first-choice middle or high school on young adult criminal activity, using data from public school choice lotteries in Charlotte-Mecklenburg school district (CMS). Seven years after random assignment, lottery winners have been arrested for fewer and less serious crimes, and have spent fewer days incarcerated. Lottery winners attended schools that were higher quality according to measures of peer and teacher inputs, as well as revealed preference, and the gain was roughly equivalent to switching from one of the lowest ranked schools to one at the district average. The reduction in crime persists through the end of the sample period, several years after enrollment in the preferred school is complete. The effects are concentrated among African-American males whose ex ante characteristics define them as high risk. As a result the CMS lottery assignment system, which gave priority to disadvantaged applicants, probably reduced crime relative to a simple lottery like those implemented by many U.S. charter schools.

PAM - Richard V. Burkhauser, Professor, Cornell University

Tuesday, November 24th, 3pm, The Rushmore Room, MVR 114

Recent Trends In Top Income Shares In The USA: Reconciling Estimates From March CPS And IRS TAX Return Data

Although the vast majority of US research on trends in the inequality of family income is based on public-use March Current Population Survey (CPS) data, a new wave of research based on Internal Revenue Service (IRS) tax return data reports substantially higher levels of inequality and faster growing trends. We show that these apparently inconsistent estimates can largely be reconciled once one uses internal CPS data (which better captures the top of the income distribution than public-use CPS data) and defines the income distribution in the same way. Using internal CPS data for 1967–2006, we closely match the IRS data-based estimates of top income shares reported by Piketty and Saez (2003), with the exception of the share of the top 1 percent of the distribution during 1993–2000. Our results imply that, if inequality has increased substantially since 1993, the increase is confined to income changes for those in the top 1 percent of the distribution.
For this semester's listing of seminars: http://www.human.cornell.edu/che/PAM/pam-seminar-series.cfm

Call for Papers, Abstracts and Panels

Miscellaneous News