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Three Essays On The Implementation Of Food Assistance Programs, Saied Toossi

Dissertations - ALL

This dissertation uses experimental and quasi-experimental methods to evaluate policy instruments available to state and local officials administering food assistance programs for improving children’s utilization of services, nutritional intake, and food security. More specifically, this dissertation consists of three chapters pertaining to the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

In the first chapter, co-authored with Amy Ellen Schwartz, I use large, uniquely detailed longitudinal administrative data on New York City students and schools, including the different lunch menus they offer over time, to present the first plausibly causal evidence on the link between school …