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NORC at the University Chicago
NORC has studied both the causes and perceptions of poverty and inequality since our founding.

By some estimates, the top one percent of Americans earn 20 percent of the income. Wealth inequality is even more dramatic, with a mere 0.1 percent of the population controlling more than 20 percent of the wealth. At the same time, more than 45 million Americans live in poverty, according to recent Census data. This level of inequality has implications for social and economic mobility, professional and educational attainment, and food and housing security, as well as the entrepreneurship and innovation that drive our economy.

NORC is one of the nation’s leading sources of reliable, independent data on poverty and inequality in this country and around the world. One of NORC’s very first studies was a survey of public perceptions about race, economic status, and poverty. Since then, NORC researchers have explored the world of low-wage work, examined the economic impact of early childhood care and development, and studied a variety of social safety net and economic development programs both in the United States and abroad.

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Highlighted Projects

Prosecutorial Discretion in Probation Revocations

Exploring the prosecutor’s role in setting supervision conditions and in the decisions made regarding those who violate them

Client:

Arnold Ventures LLC

Feeding America’s Child & Family Choice Program

The first rigorous assessment of increasing choice for food pantries and the families they serve

Client:

Feeding America National Office (FANO)

NYC Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative

Exploring the collateral consequences of drug arrests in New York City

Client:

New York City Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice (MOCJ)

Chicago Health and Activity in Real-Time (CHART)

The first-ever study documenting how activity spaces change as people age

Client:

The National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health

Housing Needs of American Indians, Alaska Natives & Native Hawaiians

Conducting a landmark study of housing needs in tribal areas to inform policy

Client:

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

Exploring the Menthol Ban Narrative on Social Media

Building a community engagement panel to study the impact of the FDA's menthol ban on Black/Latinx communities

Funder:

American Heart Association; Truth Initiative

LEO Maternity Homes Follow-Up Interviews

Conducting post-intervention follow-up interviews with unhoused pregnant women

Client:

Wilson Sheehan Lab for Economic Opportunity (LEO)

Study of Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations

Collecting new data for the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations for the first time in 20 years

Funder:

U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service

Oakland Promise Brilliant Baby Evaluation

Assessing the impact of a “two-generation” intervention on college attainment

Client:

Oakland Promise

Tribal TANF & Child Welfare Services Coordination Study

Understanding how grantees coordinate tribal programs for at-risk families

Client:

Administration for Children and Families, Health and Human Services Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation

The Concordance Academy Evaluation

An experiment to test the effectiveness of a novel prisoner reentry program in St. Louis, Missouri

Client:

The Concordance Academy

Research on the Mayors Action Plan (MAP) in NYC

Evaluation results for the Mayor’s Action Plan (MAP) in NYC

Client:

New York City Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice (MOCJ)

UCLA Data Center Technical Assistance

Supporting collection, imputation, weighting, analysis, and dissemination of data

Client:

University of California, Los Angeles

Financial Aspirations of Black Americans

A study of the financial status and aspirations of Black Americans

Client:

The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies

Evaluation and Learning Partner for the Corporate Coalition

Using innovative research methods to inform community-building investment initiatives

Client:

The Corporate Coalition of Chicago

Creciendo Juntos Evaluation

Longitudinal examination of a home visiting program’s long-term impact on mothers and children

Client:

University of Chicago Center for the Economics of Human Development