About Us

Elizabeth Rhodes

Research Director, Qualitative & Quantitative Principal Investigator

OpenResearch

Elizabeth Rhodes is the research director for the Unconditional Cash Study at OpenResearch. She completed a joint PhD in social work and political science at the University of Michigan, where her research focused on health and education provision in informal settlements, workforce development, and poverty prevention and alleviation strategies. Elizabeth also holds an MSW from Michigan and a BA in government and economics from Georgetown.

Tess Cotter

Strategy & Operations Manager

OpenResearch

Tess Cotter is the strategy and operations manager at OpenResearch. She previously worked as a strategy consultant at Publicis Sapient and taught product management at iXperience. Tess is currently pursuing an MS in data science from UC Berkeley and holds a BS in engineering psychology and economics from Tufts University. While there, she conducted research in the Spatial Cognition Lab and helped nonprofits and early-stage startups scale their impact with 180 Degrees Consulting.

Rashad Dixon

Communications Associate

OpenResearch

Rashad is currently a communications associate at OpenResearch. He previously was a data associate at OpenResearch, and prior to joining, worked as a research assistant focusing on international macroeconomic shocks and applied microeconomics at University of Texas-Austin. He holds an MA in economics from University of Texas-Austin and a BS in economics from Iowa State University.

Karina Dotson

Research & Insights Manager

OpenResearch

Karina Dotson is the research and insights manager at OpenResearch. She previously worked as a social science researcher at the University of Michigan for seven years on a wide range of topics ranging from poverty and crime, to transportation and social policy. Most recently, she has worked on research developing an index to measure transportation insecurity and explore its prevalence, causes, and consequences. Karina holds a PhD in Sociology from the University of Michigan.

Aristia Kinis

Director of Strategy & Partnerships

OpenResearch

Aristia Kinis directs strategy and partnerships at OpenResearch. She has worked across the last 15 years in research and academic nonprofit organizations, and she believes profoundly in the transformative social impact potential of nonprofits and new organizational models for research. Aristia holds a BS in foreign service from Georgetown University and recently completed her MBA.

Patrick Krause

Data Director

OpenResearch

Patrick Krause is the data director at OpenResearch. Prior to joining OpenResearch, he worked in market research, developing methods to quantify narratives in online conversations. He also worked as a Program Manager at the Center for Effective Global Action at UC Berkeley. Patrick holds an MS in international and development economics from the University of San Francisco and a BA in economics and political science from Bucknell University.

Joshua Lin

Data Associate

OpenResearch

Joshua Lin is a data associate at OpenResearch. Before joining OpenResearch, he worked as a regulatory analyst at the California Public Utilities Commission in telecommunications and has done work on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the nonprofit space. He holds an MS in information and data science from UC Berkeley, and while there, he worked as a data analyst at Catalyst Off-Grid Advisors, helping push for the expansion of solar energy in Sub-Saharan Africa. He also holds a BA in Asian studies and BS in environmental sciences from UC Berkeley.

Yesenia Vargas

Qualitative Researcher

OpenResearch

Yesenia Vargas is a qualitative researcher at OpenResearch. Prior to joining OpenResearch, she worked as a qualitative researcher at the University of Illinois at Chicago where she focused on racialized disparities in reproductive healthcare, medicalization, and parent/family wellness. While there, she conducted research for the Institute for Research on Race and Public Policy on racial wealth gaps in Chicago and worked as a research consultant for various research non-profits and firms including the Surgo Foundation and Keisler Social and Behavioral Research. She holds a BA in American studies with a minor in sociology from Wellesley College, an MEd from Boston College and an MA in sociology from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Alex Bartik

Principal Investigator

Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Research Affiliate of the Poverty Lab at the University of Chicago

David Broockman

Principal Investigator

Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley

Sarah Miller

Principal Investigator

Associate Professor of Business Economics and Public Policy at the University of Michigan

Sandra Smith

Qualitative Principal Investigator

Daniel & Florence Guggenheim Professor of Criminal Justice at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University

Eva Vivalt

Principal Investigator

Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Toronto

Jessica Wiederspan

Qualitative Principal Investigator

Senior Qualitative Researcher, PhD in Sociology and Social Work from the University of Michigan

Marianne Bertrand

Chris P. Dialynas Distinguished Service Professor of Economics and Willard Graham Faculty Scholar at the University of Chicago

Ed Dolan

Senior Fellow at the Niskanen Center

Greg Duncan

Distinguished Professor in the School of Education at the University of California, Irvine

Natalie Foster

Co-chair of the Economic Security Project

David Grusky

Barbara Kimball Browning Professor in the School of Humanities and Sciences, Professor of Sociology, Senior Fellow of the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, Director of the Stanford Center on Poverty and Inequality, and coeditor of Pathways Magazine

Lawrence Katz

Elisabeth Allison Professor of Economics at Harvard University

Connie Razza

Executive Director at Future Currents

Luke Shaefer

Director of Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan, Associate Professor at the University of Michigan, School of Social Work and Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy

Eldar Shafir

Class of 1987 Professor in Behavioral Science and Public Policy, Professor of Psychology and Public Affairs, Inaugural Director of the Kahneman-Treisman Center for Behavioral Science & Public Policy at Princeton University

Michael Strain

Director of Economic Policy Studies and John G. Searle Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute

Tavneet Suri

Associate Professor of Applied Economics at the MIT Sloan School of Management

Alford Young, Jr.

Associate Director of Center for Social Solutions, Arthur F Thurnau Professor, Edgar G. Epps Collegiate Professor of Sociology, Professor of Afroamerican and African studies, Professor of Public Policy at the University of Michigan

Sandra Smith

Daniel & Florence Guggenheim Professor of Criminal Justice at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University

Rachel Schneider

Omidyar Network Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the Aspen Institute Financial Security Program (FSP)

Sam Altman

Board Member

OpenResearch

Chris Clark

Board Member; Chief Operating Officer

OpenResearch

OpenResearch is a nonprofit research organization with a startup mentality.

We ask complex, open-ended questions.

What we do

Our approach

Our history

Our core team prioritizes impact-orientation, balancing curiosity with rigor.

OpenResearch works side-by-side with interdisciplinary academic partners to enrich our work.

An assembly of experts guides our research.

Our board is instrumental in supporting the mission of the organization and in advocating for the importance of research.