Publications & Policy Briefs
Research, organized by research area.
18+ peer-reviewed articles, working papers, policy briefs, and reports from the RISEI Lab — grouped into the four research areas where we work. Every publication has a view page and, where available, a PDF download.
18+
Total publications
NBER
Working paper #35110
LabEcon
2026 peer-reviewed article
4
Research areas
2018+
Years covered
Technology & AI
How AI changes the calculus of employment measurement — and how policy can be built for continuous model change rather than a single snapshot.
02
publications
2026Flagship WP
How (un)Stable Are LLM Occupational Exposure Scores?
NBER Working Paper #35110
First empirical audit of the stability of AI-based occupational exposure scores across GPT-4, Claude, Gemini, and Llama on 95 occupations. Finds 3.6× divergence and sign flips on individual occupations — implying that static measurement cannot survive the current pace of model change.
2026Brief
The Adaptive Precision Framework
Policy brief · Companion to NBER WP #35110
A policy-design response to unstable AI measurement: continuous recalibration of education, hiring, and workforce policy as exposure estimates evolve.
Workforce & Disability
The lab's largest portfolio. Subminimum wage transition, vocational rehabilitation ROI, competitive integrated employment, apprenticeship models, and racial equity in VR.
09
publications
2026New Working Paper
Automation and Disability: How Functional Limitations Shape Vulnerability to Technological Change
SSRN Working Paper · April 2026 · 56 pages
Industrial robots reduce employment for workers with and without disabilities at statistically indistinguishable rates — but sensory impairments bear 5.5 pp losses while cognitive difficulties show no significant effect. Within-disability heterogeneity dominates the between-group difference.
2026Flagship Journal
The Labor Market Effects of Subminimum Wage Elimination
Labour Economics 100, 102884
First national quasi-experimental analysis of Section 14(c) certificate elimination across 15 states, using DOL administrative records (2015–24) and CPS data (2009–24). Finds no aggregate job loss among workers with disabilities and a 12.4% decline in welfare dependence.
2026Journal
Making Time Count in Vocational Rehabilitation
Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin 2026 · DOI: 10.1177/00343552261442986
Economics of VR counselor time-use: which activities produce which labor-market payoffs.
2025Brief
Stronger Together: Interagency Collaboration in Youth Transitions
Policy brief · Maine Pathways to Partnerships
How VR and education agency collaboration transforms transition outcomes for youth with disabilities. Theory of change behind Maine P2P.
2026Flagship Brief
Something EPIC in Virginia
Flagship Virginia policy brief
Virginia's progress eliminating subminimum wage — evidence behind the EPIC federal model project.
2025Journal
The Economic Imperative of Vocational Rehabilitation
Peer-reviewed journal article
ROI of VR programs — what sustaining the funding actually buys.
2025Brief
The Hidden Market
Research brief on disability employment gaps
The disability employment gap the current measurement infrastructure misses.
2025Report
The Uneven Playing Field of Workforce Participation
Research report
Systemic barriers in workforce participation for people with disabilities.
2024Brief
Lead or Fall Behind
Competitive integrated employment policy brief
CIE policy recommendations for state workforce agencies.
2024Brief
Racial Disparities in Vocational Rehabilitation
Equity brief · VR service delivery
Equity analysis of who gets served in vocational rehabilitation — and who doesn't.
2024Brief
Serving All Consumers in Vocational Rehabilitation
Equity brief
Who the VR system is designed for — and what changes when it's designed for everyone.
Education & Assessment
Digital assessment accessibility, NAEP process-data methodology, online and hybrid learning outcomes, and inclusive curriculum design.
04
publications
2025Flagship Journal
NAEP Process Data & Accessibility
Peer-reviewed article
Using click-stream process data from NAEP digital math assessments to analyze how accessibility features are used by students with disabilities — and how that usage predicts performance. Foundation of the IES Innovation Grant project.
2024Brief
One Size Does Not Fit All
Policy brief · Differentiated accessibility design
Why one-size-fits-all accessibility defaults disadvantage some learners.
2013Peer-reviewed
Is It Live or Is It Internet? Experimental Estimates of the Effects of Online Instruction on Student Learning
Journal of Labor Economics 31(4) · NBER WP #16089
First randomized experimental comparison of live vs. internet instruction in higher education. Modest evidence that live dominates internet-only, with stronger effects for Hispanic, male, and lower-achieving students.
2023Brief
Purchasing Power & Education Access in Boston
Research brief · Access economics
Economic dimensions of access to education in Boston.
Global Inclusion
Longitudinal evaluation of Special Olympics unified sports and inclusive programming across 170+ countries — attitudes, behaviors, and high-school completion.
03
publications
2024Final Report
Global Evaluation of Special Olympics UCS in Six Countries
RISEI Lab final report · Argentina, Egypt, India, Pakistan, Romania, Rwanda
Mixed-methods evaluation of the Special Olympics UCS program's global expansion. High participation in Unified Sports, improved school climate and SEL for students with intellectual disabilities, and over 70% of peers reporting more positive interactions.
2025Peer-reviewed · U.S.
Whole-School Inclusion Programs and Student Academic and Behavioral Outcomes
AERA Open, 11 · U.S. study using 11 years of North Carolina data
U.S. companion study examining how the Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools program affects academic performance, absenteeism, and suspensions. Separate from and complementary to the six-country global evaluation.
2024Peer-reviewed
Special Olympics & High-School Completion
Peer-reviewed · Longitudinal analysis
Whether Special Olympics participation is associated with improved high-school completion for participants with intellectual disabilities.
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