February 15, 2021
Dr. Catherine Pakaluk, Director of Social Research and Assistant Professor, wrote an article for America Magazine covering how the American family can continue to support their loved ones amidst the coronavirus pandemic.
"What we should learn from this is that the very best place for our elderly to live—now and always—is where they are loved. This is just as true for children, people with disabilities and all who are sick or suffering. Ultimately, we know this is true for all of us. The American family can still be the safe house that our faith tells us it should be."
Dr. Catherine Ruth Pakaluk is Director of Social Research and Assistant Professor at the Busch school. Formerly, she was Assistant Professor and Chair of the Economics Department at Ave Maria University. Her primary areas of research include economics of education and religion, family studies and demography, Catholic social thought and political economy. Dr. Pakaluk is the 2015 recipient of the Acton Institute’s Novak Award, a prize given for “significant contributions to the study of the relationship between religion and economic liberty.”Pakaluk did her doctoral work at Harvard University under Caroline Hoxby, David Cutler, and 2016 Nobel-laureate Oliver Hart. Her dissertation, “Essays in Applied Microeconomics”, examined the relationship between religious ‘fit' and educational outcomes, the role of parental effort in observed peer effects and school quality, and theoretical aspects of the contraceptive revolution as regards twentieth century demographic trends.