Burt Barnow
Burt Barnow
Amsterdam Professor of Public Service and Economics and Director of the PhD Program
Contact:
805 21st St. NW
Washington, DC 20052
Burt S. Barnow, Ph.D. is the Amsterdam Professor of Public Service at the Trachtenberg School of Public policy and Public Administration at George Washington University. Dr. Barnow has over 30 years of experience as an economist and manager of research projects in the fields of workforce investment, program evaluation, performance analysis, labor economics, welfare, poverty, child support, and fatherhood. Prior to coming to George Washington University, Dr. Barnow was Associate Director for Research at Johns Hopkins University’s Institute for Policy Studies, where he worked for 18 years. Prior to that, he worked for 8 years at the Lewin Group and nearly 9 years at the U.S. Department of Labor, including 4 years as Director of the Office of Research and Evaluation in the Employment and Training Administration. Prior to those positions, Dr. Barnow was an assistant professor of economics at the University of Pittsburgh. He has a B.S. degree in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in economics from the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
Dr. Barnow has extensive experience conducting research on implementation of large government programs, and he has specific experience with the unemployment insurance program. Dr. Barnow is currently co-project director for a study for the Employment and Training Administration to analyze states’ experiences implementing workforce investment and unemployment insurance provisions of the Recovery Act. Dr. Barnow also co-directed studies for ETA on the implementation of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) and the 1992 amendments to the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA). Projects for the Employment and Training Administration involving unemployment insurance include a study analyzing ways to measure solvency of state unemployment insurance trust funds, a study of how state nonmonetary policies affect participation and receipt of unemployment insurance benefits, and a study on how various programs, including unemployment insurance, can be used in times of recession.
His current and recent research includes an evaluation of the Center for Working Families programs for the Annie E. Casey Foundation, a project to develop and evaluate demonstrations that test innovative strategies to promote self-sufficiency for low-income families for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, a study for the Employment and Training Administration to evaluate the impact of selected projects in the High Growth Job Training Initiative using nonexperimental methods, an assessment of occupational skill shortages for the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, an evaluation of the priority of services for veterans mandate for Department of Labor programs for the U.S. Department of Labor, a project to develop cost performance standards for the U.S. Department of Labor, an evaluation of the determinants of the welfare caseload in Colorado for the State of Colorado, and an evaluation of a Department of Labor demonstration project to help youth in foster care make the transition into the labor market for Casey Family Programs.
Dr. Barnow has published widely in the fields of labor economics and evaluation. He was a co-author with Christopher King of a major implementation study funded by the Department of Labor of the Workforce Investment Act. He co-edited two books in 2000: Improving the Odds: Publicly Funded Training in a Changing Labor Market, co-edited with Christopher T. King, and Evaluating Comprehensive State Welfare Reform: The Wisconsin Works Program, co-edited with Thomas Kaplan and Robert Moffitt. Dr. Barnow served as Vice Chairman of the National Academy of Sciences Committee on the Information Technology Work Force, and was a member of the NAS Board on Higher Education and Workforce for six years. He is currently serving on the NAS Committee on the External Evaluation of the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, and he has served on five other NAS committees. He currently serves on the Baltimore Workforce Investment Board’s System Effectiveness Committee, and he chaired the Maryland Governor’s Workforce Investment Board’s Performance Committee for four years. Dr. Barnow chairs the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs Research Committee, and he serves on the editorial boards of two journals.
American Economic Association
Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management
Who's Who in the East, Who's Who in America, and Who's Who in the World
Vice Chair National Academy of Sciences Committee on the Information Technology Workforce (1998-2001)
Member, National Academy of Sciences Board on Higher Education and Workforce (2002-2008)
Member, National Academy of Sciences Committee on the NASA Workforce (2006-2007)
Member, National Academy of Sciences Committee to Evaluate the Title VI and Fulbright-Hays International Programs (2006-2007)
Member, National Academy of Sciences Committee on Approaches to Evaluating the NIST Postdoctoral Research Associateship Program (2007)
Chair, Maryland Governor's Workforce Investment Board Performance Committee (1996-2001)
Member, Baltimore Workforce Investment Board System Effectiveness Committee (1998-present)
Member, Arizona Child Support Guidelines Economic Subcommittee (2006-2007)
Member, Association for Computing Machinery Job Migration Task Force (2005-2006)
Member, American Jewish Committee Task Force on National Service (2006-2007)
Policy Council, Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management (2003-2007)
Chair, National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration Research Committee, (2005-present)
Editorial Advisory Board, Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy (2000-present)
Editorial Board, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management (2007-present)
Member, National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration Nominating Committee, 2008
Member, Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management Vernon Prize Committee, 2008; chair 2009
Member, National Academy of Sciences Committee to Review the United States Institute of Peace Senior Fellows Program, 2008
Member, National Academy of Sciences Committee to Review EPA‟s Title 42 Hiring Authority for Highly Qualified Scientists and Engineers 2009-2010
Member, National Academy of Sciences Committee on the External Evaluation of the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research and Its Grantees (2009-present)
Program evaluation
Workforce Investment programs
Labor economics
Performance measurement
PPPA 6002 Research Methods and Applied Statistics
PPPA 6016 Program Evaluation
“Setting Up Social Experiments: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.” Journal for Labour Market Research, forthcoming.
“The Role of Performance Management in Workforce Investment Programs” in The Workforce Investment Act: Implementation Experiences and Evaluation Findings. Douglas Besharov and Phoebe Cottingham, editors. Kalamazoo, MI: Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, forthcoming.
“The use of Market Mechanisms in U.S. Workforce Programs: Lessons for WIA Reauthorization and the European Social Fund” with Christopher T. King in The Workforce Investment Act: Implementation Experiences and Evaluation Findings. Douglas Besharov and Phoebe Cottingham, editors. Kalamazoo, MI: Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, forthcoming.
“Implementing Efficiency Measures for Employment and Training Programs Final Report.” With John Trutko. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, Occasional Paper 2010-05, 2010.
“One Standard Fits All? The Pros and Cons of Performance Standard Adjustments.” With Carolyn Heinrich. Public Administration Review, January/February 2010.
“Vouchers in U.S. Vocational Training Programs: An Overview of What We have Learned.” Journal for Labour Market Research, March 2009.
“What We Know About the Impacts of Workforce Investment Programs” with Jeffrey Smith in Strategies for Improving Economic Mobility of Workers, Maude Toussaint-Comeau, editor. Kalamazoo, MI: Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, 2009.
“The Employment Rate of People with Disabilities.” Monthly Labor Review, November 2008.
“Close to Home: A Simultaneous Equations Model of the Relationship Between Child Care Accessibility and Female Labor Force Participation” with Christopher M. Herbst. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, March 2008.
“Occupations and Skills in the U.S.: Projection Methods and Results” in Systems, Institutional Frameworks, and Processes for Early Identification of Skill Needs, Olga Strietska-Hina and Manfred Tessaring, Editors. Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, 2007.
“An Overview of U.S. Workforce Development Policy in 2005” with Demetra Smith Nightingale in Reshaping the American Workforce in a Changing Economy. Harry J. Holzer and Demetra Smith Nightingale, Editors. Washington, DC: The Urban Institute Press, 2007.
“Placing Welfare Applicants and Recipients in Jobs through Performance-Based Contracting” with John Trutko in Managing Welfare Reform n New York City, E. S. Savas, Editor. New York, New York: Rowman & Littlefield, 2005. The Workforce Investment Act in Eight States with Christopher T. King. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, 2005. Occasional Paper Series 2005-001.
“Performance Management of U.S. Job Training Programs: Lessons from the Job Training Partnership Act.” With Jeffrey Smith. Public Finance and Management, Vol. 4, No.3, 2004.
“Performance Management of U.S. Job Training Programs” with Jeffrey A. Smith in Job Training Policy in the United States, Christopher J. O‟Leary, Robert A. Straits, and Stephen A. Wandner, Editors. Kalamazoo, Michigan: Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, 2004.
“Workforce Development in the United States: Key Legislative Initiatives and the Roles of the Private and Nonprofit Sectors” with Stefan Toepler in Strategy Mix for Nonprofit Organisations, Annette Zimer and Christina Steckler Editors. New York City, NY: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, 161-180, 2004.
“Florida Case Study” with Amy McDonald Buck in The Workforce Investment Act in Eight States: State Case Studies from a Field Network Evaluation, Volume Two. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, 2004. Occasional Paper Series 2004-003.
“Maryland Case Study” with Amy McDonald Buck in The Workforce Investment Act in Eight States: State Case Studies from a Field Network Evaluation, Volume One. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, 2004. Occasional Paper Series 2004-002.
“An Overview of United States Employment and Training Programs and Their Effectiveness.” In U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of International Affairs. Meeting the Needs of Business and Workers in the 21st Century: Proceedings of a Joint United States and European Union Seminar. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of International Affairs, February 2004, pp. 1-49.
Exemplary Practices in High-Skill-U.S. Department of Labor H-1B Training Programs with Joyce Kaiser and John Trutko. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, 2003. Occasional Paper Series 2003-007.
“What Does the Evidence from Employment and Training Programs Reveal about the Likely Effects of Ticket to Work on Service Provider Behavior?” with Jeffrey Smithin Kalman Rupp and Stephen Bell editors. Paying for Results in Vocational Rehabilitation, Washington, DC: Urban Institute Press, 177-208, 2003.
“Employment and Training Services Provided by Faith-Based Organizations: An Exploratory Study and Issues for Consideration in the Use of Public Funds” with Fredrica D. Kramer, Demetra Smith Nightingale, John Trutko, and Shayne Spaulding in A Compilation of Selected Papers from the Employment and Training Administration's 2003 Biennial National Research Conference, Joshua Riley, Aquila Branch, Stephen Wandner, and Wayne Gordon editors. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, 2003, pp. 208-243. Occasional Paper Series 2003-006.
“The Role of One-Stop Career Centers in Serving Welfare Recipients in 2002” with Demetra Smith Nightingale, Fredrica D. Kramer, and Michael Egner in A Compilation of Selected Papers from the Employment and Training Administration's 2003 Biennial National Research Conference, Joshua Riley, Aquila Branch, Stephen Wandner, and Wayne Gordon editors. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, 2003, pp. 330-418. Occasional Paper Series 2003-006.
The Workforce Investment Act in Eight States: Overview of Findings from a Field Network Study with Christopher T. King. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, 2003. Occasional Paper Series 2003-003. Unemployment Insurance Non-Monetary policies and Practices: How Do They Affect Program Participation? A Study of 8 States with Michael E. Fishman, Mary Farrell, Karen N. Gardiner, and John Trutko. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, 2003. Occasional Paper Series 2003-001.
“Occupations and Skills in the United States: Projection Methods and Results through 2008.” In Michael Neugart and Klaus Schomann editors. Forecasting Labour Markets in OECD Countries: Measuring and Tracking Mismatches. Edward Elgar Publishing: Chelenham, United Kingdom, 2002.
“Review of Recent Pilot, Demonstration, Research, and Evaluation Initiatives to Assist in the Implementation of Programs under the Workforce Investment Act” with Daniel B. Gubits. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, 2002. Occasional Paper Series 2003-10.
“Is the New Obsession with "Performance Management‟ Masking the Truth About Social Programs?” with Ann B. Blalock in Quicker, Better Cheaper? Managing Performance in American Government, Dall Forsythe Editor. Albany, NY: Rockefeller Institute Press, 2001. Workforce Development in Baltimore: Catalogue of Funding Stream Programs. Baltimore, with Michael Bell, Shayne Spaulding, and Jason Shultz. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins Institute for Policy Studies 2001.
“The Role of One-Stop Career Centers in Serving Welfare Recipients in 2002” with Demetra Smith Nightingale, Fredrica D. Kramer, and Michael Egner in A Compilation of Selected Papers from the Employment and Training Administration's 2003 Biennial National Research Conference, Joshua Riley, Aquila Branch, Stephen Wandner, and Wayne Gordon editors. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, 2003, pp. 330-418. Occasional Paper Series 2003-006.
“Evaluation–A Management Tool for Enhancing Performance of Arts Organizations and Arts Stabilization/Capacity Building Programs” with Marta Elisa Moret and John W. Trutko. National Arts Stabilization Journal, Fall 2000.
"Exploring the Relationship Between Performance Management and Program Impact: A Case Study of the Job Training Partnership Act." Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, Winter 2000.
"Vouchers for Federal Targeted Training Program" in Eugene Steurele, Van Doorn Ooms, George Peterson, and Robert Reischauer Editors. Vouchers and Related Delivery Mechanisms: Consumer Choice in the Provision of Public Services. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press, 2000.
"Job Creation for Low-Wage Workers: An Assessment of Public Service Jobs, Tax Credits, and Empowerment Zones" in The Low-Wage Labor Market: Challenges and Opportunities for Self- Sufficiency. Kelleen Kaye and Demetra Nightingale, Editors. Washington, DC: Urban Institute Press, 2000.
“Introduction” with Thomas Kaplan and Robert Moffitt in Burt S. Barnow, Thomas Kaplan, and Robert Moffitt, editors Evaluating Comprehensive State Welfare Reform: The Wisconsin Works Program, Albany, NY: Rockefeller Institute Press, 2000.
“Publicly Funded Training in a Changing Labor Market” with Christopher T. King, in Improving the Odds: Publicly Funded Training in a Changing Labor Market, Burt S. Barnow and Christopher T. King, editors. Washington, DC: Urban Institute Press, 2000.
“Customized Training for Employers: Training People for Jobs That Exist and Employers Who Want to Hire Them” with Kellie Isbell and John Trutko, in Improving the Odds: Publicly Funded Training in a Changing Labor Market, Burt S. Barnow and Christopher T. King, editors. Washington, DC: Urban Institute Press, 2000.
“Strategies for Improving the Odds” with Christopher T. King, in Improving the Odds: Publicly Funded Training in a Changing Labor Market, Burt S. Barnow and Christopher T. King, editors. Washington, DC: Urban Institute Press, 2000.
Baltimore Area Jobs and Low-Skill Job Seekers: Assessing the Gaps.” With Michael Bell, David Stevens, and Richard Clinch. Baltimore, MD: Job Opportunities Task Force, March 2000.
"The Baby and the Bath Water: Lessons for the Next Employment and Training Program" with Christopher T. King, in Of Heart and Mind: Social Essays in Honor of Sar Levitan, Garth Mangum and Stephen Mangum Editors. Kalamazoo, Michigan: Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, 1997.
“Designs for evaluating Devolution” with Robert Moffitt. Focus, Spring 1997.
"The Economics of Occupational Labor Shortages." William Crown editor. Handbook on Employment and the Elderly. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group, 1996.
"Policies for People with Disabilities in U.S. Employment and Training Programs," in Disabilities, Cash Benefits, and Work, Jerry L. Mashaw, Virginia Reno, Richard Burkhauser, and Monroe Berkowitz Editors. Kalamazoo, Michigan: Upjohn Institute for Employment Research,
1996.
Employment and Training for America's Homeless: Report on the Job Training for the Homeless Demonstration Program Report to Congress, with John W. Trutko, Susan Kessler Beck, and Frances R. Rothstein. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, 1994.
"Economic Studies of Expenditures on Children and Their Relationship to Child Support Guidelines." In Child Support Guidelines: the Next Generation, Margaret Campbell Haynes editor. Washington, D.C.: Office of Child Support Enforcement, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1994.
"The Adequacy of Child Support Guidelines." Marilyn L. Ray, Chris Nemeth, Joyce Robinson, and Susan Vroman authors of other chapters. The New York State Child Support Standards Act Evaluation Project Report 1993. Albany, New York: University at Albany, State University of New York, 1994.
"Thirty Years of Changing Federal, State, and Local Relationships in Employment and Training Programs." Publius: The Journal of Federalism, Summer 1993.
"Expenditures on Children and Child Support Guidelines" with Laurie J. Bassi. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, Summer 1993.
Labor Shortage Case Studies, with John Trutko, Amy B. Chasanov, and Abhay Pande. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration Research and Evaluation Report Series 93-E, 1993.
"Firm-Based Education and Training of Workers: A Case Study of the Xerox Corporation" with Amy Chasanov. In Military Cutbacks and the Expanding Role of Education, Nevzer Stacey editor. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education, 1992.
"Demonstration Evaluations and Cost Neutrality: Using Caseload Models to Determine the Federal Cost Neutrality of New Jersey's REACH Demonstration" with Steven Garasky. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, Fall 1992.
"The Effects of Performance Standards on State and Local Programs: Lessons for the Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Program." Charles Manski and Irwin Garfinkel editors. Evaluating Welfare and Training Programs. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1992.
"A Changing Nation--Its Changing Labor Force" with Everett Crawford and Carol J.Romero. National Commission for Employment Policy Research Report No. 91-04, November 1991.
"Government Training as a Means of Reducing Unemployment." D. Lee Bawden and Felicity Skidmore editors. Rethinking Employment Policy. Washington, D.C.: The Urban Institute Press, 1989.
"Survey of Government-Provided Training Programs" with Laudan Y. Aron. in Commission on Workforce Quality and Labor Market Efficiency. Investing in People: A Strategy to Address America's Workforce Crisis Background Papers, Vol. I. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Labor, 1989.
"Performance Management and Services to Hard-to-Serve Individuals in JTPA: The Issues Involved and Some Suggested Approaches." With Jill Constantine. National Commission for Employment Policy Research Report, 1989.
"Developing Models to Predict State AFDC Caseloads: A Guide for States." Report prepared for the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. March 1988.
"The Uses and Limits of Social Experiments." The Proceedings of the Industrial Relations Research Association. 1987.
"The Impact of CETA Programs on Earnings: A Review of the Literature." The Journal of Human Resources. Spring 1987.
"Evaluating Employment and Training Programs." Evaluation and Program Planning. Spring 1985.
"The Education, Training, and Work Experience of the Adult Labor Force from 1984 to 1995." National Commission for Employment Policy Research Report Series. April 1985.
"Five Guidelines for Evaluation." In The Dislocated Worker, William H. Kolberg, Editor. Cabin John, Md.: Seven Locks Press, l983.
"Issues in the Analysis of Selection Bias," with Glen G. Cain and Arthur S. Goldberger. In Evaluation Studies Review Annual, Vol. 5, Ernst W. Stromsdorfer and George Farkas, Editors. Beverly Hills: Sage Publications, l980.
"The Costs of Defined Benefit Pension Plans and Firm Adjustments," with Ronald G. Ehrenberg. Quarterly Journal of Economics, November l979.
"Concepts and Measures of Structural Unemployment," with Robert Lerman and Philip Moss. Chapter 2 in Increasing Job Opportunities in the Private Sector. National Commission for Manpower Policy Special Report No. 29, l979.
"Evaluating Funding Formulas," with Robert Coltrane and Christopher King. Chapter 5 in CETA: An Analysis of the Issues. National Commission for Manpower Policy Special Report No. 23, l978.
"Theoretical Issues in the Estimation of Production Functions in Manpower Programs." Research in Labor Economics Supplement l, l979. Farrell Bloch, Ed.
"Measuring Costs of Manpower Training Programs," In Perspectives on the Costs and Benefits of Applied Social Research, Clark Abt, editor. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The Council for Applied Social Research, l979.
"A Reanalysis of the Effect of Head Start on Cognitive Development: Methodology and Empirical Findings," with Glen G. Cain. The Journal of Human Resources, Spring l977. Reprinted in Howard E. Freeman ed. Policy Studies Review Annual, Vol. 2. Beverly Hills: Sage Publications, l978.
"The Use of Proxy Variables When One or Two Independent Variables Are Measured with Error." American Statistician, August l976.
PhD, Economics, University of Wisconsin at Madison
MS, Economics, University of Wisconsin at Madison
BS, Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology