Robert P. Strauss
Robert P. Strauss has been Professor of Economics and Public Policy at the H. John Heinz III College since 1979.
Academic career
Prior to joining Carnegie Mellon, he was a member of the economics department at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for 10 years where he was also an adjunct faculty member in the Bush Institute for Family Policy at the Frank Porter Graham Center. He received is BA in Economics from the Honors College of the University of Michigan in 1966, and his PhD in economics from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1970 with specializations in public finance and human resources. Strauss also worked at the University of Rochester in the mid-1990s.
Research
His research interests span federal, state, and local finance, and various aspects of education and econometric methodology. His current research includes analysis of the effects of teacher quality reforms on teacher preparation institutions and student performance in Pennsylvania, and the effects of living wage ordinances.
Public service and awards
In addition to his scholarly activities, he has extensive public service experience at the US Treasury as a Brookings Economic Policy Fellow and assistant to the Deputy Secretary of the Treasury (1970-1972), at the Joint Committee on Taxation (1975-8), and a variety of state and local governments. He received the Treasury Department's Exceptional Service Award in 1972, presidential pens from President Richard Nixon in 1972 and President Gerald Ford in 1976, as well as awards from the Tax Executives Institute, and Southern Economic Association. In November, 2005 he received the Steven D. Gold Award from the Association for Public Policy and Management, National Tax Association, and Federation of Tax Administrators for his contributions to state and local tax policy.