Using data from the Current Population Survey and the New Immigrant Survey, this paper examines the common perception that immigrants are concentrated in high-risk jobs for which they receive little wage compensation. Compared to native U.S. workers, non-Mexican immigrants are not at higher risk and have substantial values of statistical life.…

The Appalachian region is one of the most persistently poor areas of the United States. A focal explanation for the weak economic performance over the years is the fact that Appalachia has long lagged behind other regions in terms of the supply of skilled workers, particularly those with higher levels of education attainment, and this lack of…

One of the most remarkable yet least remarked upon accomplishments in American public education in the twentieth century is the success of the school consolidation movement. Between 1930 and 1970, nine out of every ten school districts were eliminated through consolidation. Nearly two-thirds of schools that existed in 1930 were gone by 1970. These…

This paper examines reasons why personnel policy and wage setting differ between traditional public, private, and charter schools and the effects of these policies on academic measures of teacher quality. Survey and administrative data suggest that the regulatory freedom, small size of wage-setting units, and a competitive market environment make…

This paper uses panel regressions to investigate the effects of innovation policies and framework factors on business R&D intensity and patenting for a sample of 20 OECD countries over the period 1982- 2001. Both sets of factors are found to matter; the main determinants of innovativeness appear to be the availability of scientists and engineers,…

This paper examines the extent, nature, and implications of spatial variations in skill levels across England. Section 2 sets out reasons why skill levels should be important to localities and their economic potential by outlining their growing importance and the way in which they are connected to economic well-being. Section 3 sets out the extent…

The question of whether the Job Corps's impacts on students' employment and related outcomes differ according to the characteristics of the Job Corps center attended was examined. The study sample consisted of approximately 9,400 program group members and 6,000 control group members who were randomly selected from among the nearly 81,000…