Economics Student Selected for Research Program

This past summer, Kent State economics student Jera Oliver was selected to attend the American Economic Association Summer Program and Minority Scholarship Program held at Duke University. During the summer, Oliver took master’s-level classes in mathematical economics, microeconomics theory and econometrics in addition to her research seminar. She received a full scholarship from the American Economic Association and designation as a National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates Scholar.

“One of the greatest benefits was connecting with top scholars in the field of economics,” says Oliver. She had the opportunity to work with Dr. Frank Sloan, a nationally known health economist, to examine food stamps and trends in obesity. Based on their research, her group wrote a chapter on the topic for an applied economics journal.

Using data from the Panel Survey of Income Dynamics, a longitudinal study of nearly 8,000 families, Oliver and her student colleagues found that while participation in the USDA Food and Nutrition Service’s Food Stamp Program did positively correlate with a larger change in body mass index of children during a six-year period, the effect was not statistically significant. Her group’s findings support more recent literature arguing that the relationship between Food Stamp Program participants and obesity has disappeared.

Oliver says her undergraduate research experiences have been very valuable to her. “At times research is tedious, but the end result is very satisfying,” she says. “Doing your own research is a way to validate world phenomenon and world issues for yourself.”