Katherine Magnuson

Katherine Magnuson is a Vilas Distinguished Professor of Social Work at the Sandra Rosenbaum School of Social Work and a former director of the Institute of Research on Poverty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

She is a national expert on the well-being and development of economically disadvantaged children and their families, with specific attention to unconditional cash transfers and early childhood education.

Magnuson’s research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (Administration of Children and Families, Office of Research Planning and Evaluation), Spencer Foundation, and Heising-Simons Foundation.

She is a former associate editor of Child Development and Developmental Psychology.

Magnuson’s awards and honors include winner of University of Wisconsin-Madison Graduate School Romnes and Vilas Faculty awards, and she is a fellow of the American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare. She received her Ph.D. in human development and social policy at Northwestern University.