March 1, 2021
Maria D. Fitzpatrick is a professor of economics and public policy in the College of Human Ecology and the director of the Cornell Institute for Public Affairs. In September 2020 she was named Cornell’s new associate vice provost for social sciences. In that role, she is helping to further the mission of the Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation to advance and support Cornell research by promoting scholarship and collaborations throughout the broad landscape of the social sciences.
She also is continuing her own robust research program, focusing on child and family policy and more effective ways to pinpoint child abuse and maltreatment; the role of teachers in child protection; the economics of education; and how economics shapes the way people make life decisions.