Economics Commons^™

State-Level Analysis Of Minimum Wage And Teen Employment Across The U.S. In 2024, Owen Siegel

Celebrating Scholarship and Creativity Day (2018-)

This study examines whether differences in state minimum wage levels are associated with variation in teen employment across U.S. states in 2024. Using a cross-sectional regression framework, the analysis estimates the relationship between minimum wage policy and the employment rate of individuals aged 16–19 while controlling for educational attainment, demographic composition, income, and regional differences. The results indicate that higher minimum wages are associated with lower teen employment rates. Specifically, a one-dollar increase in the minimum wage is associated with an estimated 0.87 percentage-point decrease in teen employment, holding other factors constant. This result is statistically significant and economically meaningful, …

Treaty Database Project, Elisabeth Smith

Honors Capstones

International environmental governance is shaped by a complex network of treaties addressing issues such as water, agriculture, air and atmosphere, energy, wild species and ecosystems, mineral resources, and waste and hazardous substances, among many others.. However, information about these agreements is often fragmented across multiple sources, making it difficult for researchers, policymakers, and the public to understand how different treaties relate to one another. This project develops a structured database of environmental treaties that captures key attributes such as thematic focus, geographic scope, participating countries, and implementation mechanisms.

Building on this database, the project also provides an intuitive front-end interface …

Hospital Concentration And Aca Premiums, Lucas Piselli

Bryant REDay (Research and Engagement Day)

This research examines the relationship between hospital market concentration and health insurance premiums in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplaces. As hospitals across the United States have increasingly merged or closed, provider markets have become more concentrated, raising questions about whether consolidation improves efficiency or instead increases healthcare costs through greater market power. Using Marketplace premium data, hospital discharge information, and demographic controls from 2014–2017, the study analyzes how hospital concentration, measured by the Herfindahl–Hirschman Index (HHI), affects insurance pricing. The findings show that highly concentrated hospital markets are associated with significantly higher Marketplace premiums, even after controlling for insurer …

Strategic Economic Evaluation Of Microsoft's Post-Acquisition Gaming Portfolio, Brett Hancock, Daniela Orta Castaneda, Travis Stevens, M. Affan Badar

Symposium Projects

Microsoft Gaming is a gaming and entertainment division of Microsoft. In 2023 Microsoft bought Activision Blizzard, another industry leader. Rapidly changing industry and increased operation costs have created challenges. Sound financial analysis required to maintain company profitability and health. The purpose of this study is to analyze the economic data to recommend potential areas of investment and consolidation.

Budgeting Apps, Financial Literacy, And Financial Control, Max Masabo, Abdullah Mohammad Mahi

Presentations - 2026

Our paper shows the real hidden connections between budgeting app usage and financial wellbeing of U.S Households

Evaluating How New York City’S Recycling And Organic Waste Systems Reduce Resource Waste And Methane Emissions, Zihan Cao

Publications and Research

This study analyzes New York City’s waste management systems, with a focus on food waste diversion, composting, and renewable energy initiatives, to assess their role in methane emission reduction and resource efficiency. The analysis highlights the relative effectiveness of different waste management pathways and suggests that community-scale composting and decentralized anaerobic digestion are associated with substantial methane reductions relative to cost.

Federal Election Commission And Indiana Secretary Of State Campaign Finance Information Resoures, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

This presentation covers campaign finance information resources produced by the Federal Election Commission (FEC) and Indiana Secretary of State. It describes how these agencies began, details how they oversee and regulate U.S. federal and Indiana state elections, and documents contributions made by individuals, organizations, political parties, and political action committees to individual candidates and organizations. Reporting documentation on these election races is also included.

Selected U.S. Government Statistical Agencies And Their Data, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Provides introductory and detailed overview of U.S. Government agencies statistics. Includes examples of how an individual U.S. law authorizes government agencies to compile statistics for particular congressional committees and the general public. Statistics cover topics such as demography, defense, foreign assistance, economic growth, criminal justice, energy, Social Security, and Medicare.

Scla 521 Ai In Society, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Provides access to information resources on societal impacts of artificial intelligence from multiple libraries databases covering multiple disciplines including government information resources.

U.S. Government Agency Podcasts, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Presents podcasts from U.S. Government agencies which can be discovered through the U.S. Government Publishing Office's Catalog of Government Publications. Agencies whose podcasts are presented include the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Peace Corps, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Government Accountability Office (GAO), National Park Service, Department of Justice, Federal Reserve System, and U.S. Naval War College.

Searching Govinfo.Gov/, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

This U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) database provides access to information legal, legislative, and regulatory information produced on multiple subjects by the U.S. Government. Content includes congressional bills, congressional committee hearings and prints (studies), reports on legislation, the text of laws, regulations, and executive orders and multiple U.S. Government information resources covering subjects from accounting to zoology.

Liberty And Justice For Some: Comparing Dwi Convictions By Ethnicity, Gretel Busse, Daniel Wilkerson

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

This study observes potential disadvantages faced by minorities in the criminal justice system. Using data from DWI cases, we compare outcomes for Hispanic and white criminal defendants. Controlling for BrAC and criminal history, we find that Hispanics are more likely than whites to be convicted and incarcerated, and less likely to use a private attorney.

Stability And Crisis Response: Comparing The U.S. And Canadian Banking Systems, Sarah E. Boslaugh

Undergraduate Research Symposium

In 2007-08, the United States experienced a banking crisis, as 5 of the 6 other G-7 countries. The exception? Canada, which experienced only a mild recession, with no bank failures or government bank bailouts. Further research reveals that while banking crises have been commonplace in the United States (8 occurred in the 19th century alone), they are essentially nonexistent in Canadian history. I find that the primary reasons for these differences in national experience lie not in the strictness of government regulation or the qualifications demanded of borrowers in the two countries, but in the differing structures of the banking …

Ucimco Endowment Semi-Annual Presentation, Fall 2023, Will Alain, Billy Cardino, Tyler Causa, Patrick Collins, Bill Cook, Cole Grubbs, Kieran Hollander, Dylan Hollick, Jared Minnichbach, Alexandra Nenish, Jordan Pick, Kipp Ransome, Kirk Ransome, Kyle Rosenfeld, Tyler Sargent, Michael Scheller, Max Shilstone, Mckade Trauger, Nick Troha

Business and Economics Presentations

The Ursinus College Investment Management Company (UCIMCO) consists of groups of student analysts who manage endowment-style and stock selection funds on behalf of the college endowment. This presentation, by the endowment team, examines performance and investment philosophy while discussing selections in the portfolio including: fixed income, U.S. and international equities, real estate and commodities.

Ursinus College Women's Investment Fund, Fall 2023, Sarah Dilello, Emily Carkhuff, Katie Ciuffreda, Laura Bradley, Samantha Mallen, Carly Troilo, Camila Knipe, Isabella Scarpetti, Mayleigh Rickey, Carlie Shiller

Business and Economics Presentations

The Ursinus College Investment Management Company (UCIMCO) consists of groups of student analysts who manage endowment-style and stock selection funds on behalf of the college endowment. In 2020, a group of women students began to manage their own fund. This presentation reviews activities of the Fall 2023 semester and analyzes the stock performance of various companies including: Salesforce, InterDigital Inc., SPX Technologies, NextEra Energy and RenaissanceRe Holdings.

The Role Of U.S. Government Regulatioms, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Provides detailed coverage of information resources on U.S. Government information resources for federal regulations. Features historical background on these regulations, details on the Federal Register and Code of Federal Regulations, includes information on individuals can participate in the federal regulatory process by commenting on proposed agency regulations via https://regulations.gov/, describes the role of presidential executive orders, refers to recent and upcoming U.S. Supreme Court cases involving federal regulations, and describes current congressional legislation seeking to give Congress greater involvement in the federal regulatory process.

Economic Empowerment Through Art, Ava Ellis

Thinking Matters Symposium

Economic Empowerment Through Art: Final Abstract

Ava Ellis, Shaw Innovation Fellow, USM, MSW graduate student

My research project focused on using drawing and one-to-one art workshops as a way into discussing money habits. Participants shared their beliefs about money and responses to questions about money. They considered ways they may want to alter habits related to money within the 1 hour workshop, art was used as a scaffold to envision future-oriented economic goals. Participants mentioned uncertainty regarding financial planning and a lack of education regarding money in childhood. All felt they often needed more financial insight, in terms of developing …

Congressional Oversight Of U.S. Government Programs, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Provides detailed overview of how the U.S. Congress conducts oversight of federal agency programs. Contents include a letter from a member of Congress to an agency head concerning an environmental development in Indiana, information on the foundations of congressional oversight, details on how Congress may require agency reports on various subjects in public laws, an example of a congressionally mandated report by the Department of Defense, documentation of congressional funding of individual federal agencies, examples of congressional committee hearings, congressional committee issuance of oversight and investigative reports which may include dissenting opinions, Congressional Budget Office cost estimates on congressional committee …

U.S. Energy Information Administration Information Resources, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Provides information about the resources produced by U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration. These resources cover energy statistics for U.S., states, the United States, and foreign countries. They also cover energy products as varied as coal, natural gas, nuclear energy, petroleum, and renewable energy.

Analyzing The Accessibility Of Sports Facilities In Missoula, Montana, Quinn T. Peacock

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

The purpose of this survey is to understand the qualitative value of the public field inventory that will be analyzed based on quantitative data. We want to understand not only the assumed factors from data that affect rec-participants behavior, but what the individuals have to say about it for themselves as well.

The Effect Of Quantitative Easing On U.S. Stock Prices And Wealth Inequality, Griffin W. Phillips

Student Scholar Showcase

My thesis will investigate and try to find a casual relationship between Quantitative Easing, or “QE”, and the U.S. stock market since 2003. The secondary effects will then be investigated to see if stock prices impact wealth inequality. To find the causal relationship between the two a regression model will be used. It predicts the magnitude of effects for QE and other variables that may impact stock prices. Since 2007-2009, the Federal Reserve has used QE as a means to spur economic growth. This expansionary monetary policy has impacted many financial markets including the U.S. stock market. Finding the extent …

Ucimco Endowment Semi-Annual Presentation, Fall 2021, Kareem Elghawy, Kyle Blaze, Jeremy Calabro, Ryan Carkhuff, Jacob Connelly, Christopher Craven, Zachary Crebbin, Olivia Defusco, Colin Holtzman, Brooke Hurley, Matthew Mcmahon, Jared Minnichbach, Zoey Nikolaou, Jared O'Connell, Erik Ojert, Thomas Pancheri, Christopher Porzelt, Tyler Sargent, Scott Sloan, Storm Snape, Matthew Snyder, Matthew Tuley

Business and Economics Presentations

The Ursinus College Investment Management Company (UCIMCO) consists of groups of student analysts who manage endowment-style and stock selection funds on behalf of the college endowment. This presentation, by the endowment team, examines performance and investment philosophy while discussing selections in the portfolio including: developed and emerging market equities, U.S. equities, corporate bonds, U.S. treasuries and U.S. real estate.

Ucimco Stock Selection Semi-Annual Presentation, Fall 2021, Michael Buck, Stevie Benson, Walker Hamilton, Mason Jolivette, Harrison Lorenc, Devin Molina, Stephen Schoenborn, Jack Shimer, Mohammad Sufyan, John Wagner, Riley Yee

Business and Economics Presentations

The Ursinus College Investment Management Company (UCIMCO) consists of groups of student analysts who manage endowment-style and stock selection funds on behalf of the college endowment. This presentation, by the stock selection team, examines quarterly performance and strategy while discussing the most recent selections in the portfolio: Agios Pharmaceuticals, CubeSmart, Splunk and Nexstar Media Group.

Ursinus College Women's Investment Management Company, Fall 2021, Maddy Sorokanych, Taylor Beaumont, Shelby Boyle, Laura Bradley, Olivia Defusco, Rachel Grossbauer, Jess Gutekunst, Rebecca Lewis, Alice Nathanson, Madelyn Nau, Ketlee Staz, Marcella Thanh-Guyet, Theodora Zeibekis

Business and Economics Presentations

The Ursinus College Investment Management Company (UCIMCO) consists of groups of student analysts who manage endowment-style and stock selection funds on behalf of the college endowment. In 2020, a group of women students began to manage their own fund. This presentation reviews activities of the Fall 2021 semester and analyzes the stock performance of various companies including: Anthem, Inc., American Well Corporation, Netflix, Travel and Leisure Company, Cognizant Technology Solutions, Oshkosh and the Hershey Company.

Biden Administration U.S. Space Force Policy Literature, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Provides details on U.S. Space Force policy literature produced by the Biden Administration during its first eight months. Includes announcements that the Biden Administration will continue this new armed services branch begun during the Trump Administration. Features congressional testimony of Biden Administration officials such as Secretary of Defense Lloyd Wilson and Air Force Space Command leader General James Dickinson, the text of Space Force's 2021 Digital Force Vision document, congressionally approved FY 2022 space force budget figures, congressional committee comments and report requirements contained in emerging defense spending legislation, the emergence of collaboration between Space Force and universities such as …

Sunk Or Dunk?: An Empirical Analysis Of The Effect Of Sunk Cost Fallacy In Professional Basketball, Hailey Dicicco

Business and Economics Presentations

This project is divided into two sections. The first section is a comparison between the NBA and WNBA, using performance metrics from game statistics. I researched the history of women in sports and specifically read about how women first became integrated into the game of soccer. In the regression for section one, we used a few selected performance metrics and minutes in order to observe any relationships between specific skills and minutes. We also focused on the difference between the leagues in terms of what game stats are more or less significant.

In the second section of this paper, we …

Ursinus College Women's Investment Management Company, Taylor Beaumont, Shannon Blessing, Olivia Defusco, Julia Ewing, Angela Gervasi, Wendy Luo, Eve Peiffer, Becca Lewis, Ellie Templeton, Emily Benning, Rebecca Lam, Maddy Sorokanych, Theodora Zeibekis, Marcella Thanh-Guyet, Delanie Rogers

Business and Economics Presentations

The Ursinus College Investment Management Company (UCIMCO) consists of groups of student analysts who manage endowment-style and stock selection funds on behalf of the college endowment. In 2020, a group of women students began to manage their own fund. This presentation reviews activities of the previous year and analyzes the stock performance of various companies including: Anthem, Inc., American Well Corporation, SNAP, Inc., Yatsen Holdings Ltd. and Yum China Holdings.

Pornography: Social, Emotional And Mental Implications Among Adolescents, William Kelly Canady

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

This presentation will explain the historical development of pornography. It will highlight four segments: 1- Porn’s impact on brain development of reward pathways, ultimately increasing the appetite for more porn. 2- Porn can be a false substitute for real intimacy, resulting in decreased sexual satisfaction with a real person and increased verbal and physical aggression. 3- Porn promotes sex trafficking, promotes multiple sex partners and reduced STD prevention. 4- A review of interventions available to assist clients in navigating a lifestyle away from pornography.

New Kid On The Blockchain: The Rise Of Cryptocurrency In The Global Arena: Humanitarian Usage With Blockchain, Rhonda S. Binda

Open Educational Resources

In 2018, the world was shaken by the fast rise of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies that use a decentralized, blockchain technology for payment transfers outside of the traditional banking system. The potential impact this alternative form of banking could have in the medium and long term on the over 2 billion people globally unbanked is tremendous. Additionally, blockchain itself is being used for value transfer combined with bio and genetic tagging technologies in refugee camps for example, bringing to rise a new era where technology for development is disrupting education, healthcare and security programs globally.

Hoop Dreams: An Empirical Analysis Of The Gender Wage Gap In Professional Basketball, Hailey Dicicco

Business and Economics Presentations

The gender wage gap is a very prominent point of discussion in the professional world, but in the sports world, it has taken the spotlight in recent years. One sport that has seen discussion and debate over salary differences is the National Basketball Association and Women’s National Basketball Association. In 2018, the average salary in the NBA was 6.4 million dollars, while the average salary in the WNBA was 71,635 dollars. A reason why these salaries are so differently is due to the amount of revenue that each league brings in. The NBA brings in roughly 7.4 billion dollars a …