Kelly Bedard

Kelly Bedard is a Professor of Economics at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), affiliated with the Department of Economics within the College of Letters & Science. Her research focuses on the Economics of Education and Health, including studies on military service impacts, gender test score gaps in OECD countries, and immigrant health dynamics. Notably, her work on kindergarten student age effects was highlighted in Malcolm Gladwell's bestselling book. Her research has been supported by grants from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK).

Her work explores policy-relevant topics such as paid family leave programs, classroom competition dynamics, and ADHD diagnosis disparities. Bedard's recent studies analyze California's paid family leave policies using administrative data, revealing insights into benefit utilization and demographic disparities. She also investigates gender equity in academic tenure policies and feedback mechanisms influencing student retention in economics.

• Key Research Themes: Education Policy, Health Economics, Labor Markets, Gender Disparities
• Grants: Two NIDDK grants supporting her research
• Notable Collaboration: Consortium for Applied Research in Economics

Bedard's work bridges academic rigor with real-world policy implications, particularly in education and labor markets. Her experimental approaches to studying classroom competition and team incentives provide actionable insights for educational and organizational design.