Social Sciences

UO study shows immigrants bring financial benefit

ECONOMICS - Immigration is a part of the United States’s DNA, but it’s long been a contentious political subject. Economic models have found immigration to be a fiscal cost, but a recent study by a University of Oregon economist challenges these findings, showing that low-skilled immigrants on average contribute an additional $750 in annual fiscal benefits not previously accounted for.
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Uncovering Hidden Figures

HISTORY - The stories of more than 140 Mexican and Mexican American workers who lived and worked not far from the University of Oregon campus went untold for nearly a century until students in a CAS history class discovered them, countering the white settler-dominant history books of the area. Led by Julie Weise, a history associate professor who focuses on the history of migrations in the Americas, students researched and wrote these local histories as part of a course series called Hidden Histories, which aims to tell the stories of underrepresented communities in Lane County.

People’s political opinions influence their views of presidential norms

POLITICAL SCIENCE - Ideas of what constitutes “normal” in the exercise of presidential duties have changed in recent years, but a new University of Oregon study indicates most Americans still support traditional norms, at least until they run up against partisanship. Chandler James, a political science assistant professor, published this research in Presidential Studies Quarterly.

From Arafat to the Dalai Lama, sociology alum shielded leaders

SOCIOLOGY - When Burks arrived at the UO in 1992, he had no idea what to study, but an introductory sociology class grabbed his attention. “It appealed to my curiosity about what makes people tick,” he says. Burks would go on to have a career filled with danger and intrigue as a special agent for the US government, protecting international dignitaries and overseeing security at embassies around the world.

Recognizing outstanding research

The Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation announced this year's Outstanding Research Awards, many of which went to College of Arts and Sciences faculty members: Professor Carlos Aguirre (history and Latin American studies), Assistant Professor Gabriel Sanchez (anthropology) and Leland O'Driscoll (associate director of the Oregon Hazards Lab).