PhD Candidate Specializing in Econometrics, Statistics, and Data

Cj L.

I am a PhD candidate in Economics and Education at Teachers College, Columbia University with over a decade of experience doing applied economics research using advanced statistical techniques to analyze education policy. I am also a very experienced teacher. Most recently, I taught statistics for three years at the undergraduate level when I served as a Professorial Lecturer at George Washington University, teaching "Data Analysis for Journalism and Political Communication." In this course, I guided students through foundational statistical concepts and practical data analysis using Stata. But I am also an experienced teacher of younger students as well. My teaching journey began as a Teach for America Corps Member in Washington, DC, where I taught Spanish and cultural studies to elementary school students. At this time, I also received my Master’s of Arts in Teaching from American University. I have also taught students from around the world, through both my experience as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in Madrid, where I supported high school students in immersive, cross-disciplinary English instruction and my experience as an ESOL teaching assistant for international students at the English Language Institute at Summer at Sem.

In addition to my teaching credentials, I have worked as a Senior Advisor in the Office of the Chief Economist at the U.S. Department of Education, where I applied advanced econometric methods to evaluate key federal policies. I have also worked in similar combined research and policy work at the College Board, the Center for American Progress, and the Education Policy Initiative at the University of Michigan. This work, combined with my peer-reviewed publications in journals such as the American Economic Review and the Economics of Education Review, ensures that I bring real-world insights into my teaching.