2024 Research Innovation and Development Grants in Economics (RIDGE) Conference

The 2024 RIDGE Conference on October 7 will feature new economic research aimed at enhancing food security and dietary quality for low-income Americans. Both new and established investigators who were 2023 RIDGE grantees will present on topics such as: the effect of SNAP benefit distribution on subjective well-being; maternal WIC participation during pregnancy and gestational weight gain; pandemic-EBT benefits and dietary quality; and others. An agenda with all sessions, participants, and presentation topics is available. RIDGE is administered in partnership with Tufts University, the University of Connecticut, and the University of Missouri.

Location and date:

There are both in-person and virtual options for attending the RIDGE conference. The conference will be held at the USDA, Food and Nutrition Service building located at 1320 Braddock Pl, Alexandria, VA 22314 from 8 am - 4 pm ET via in-person and online.

Registration:

Attendance is free, but advance registration is required for both in-person and online participants. Please use this Google registration form. For in-person participants who are not USDA employees, this form includes a field asking you to upload this USDA building entry form. If you are not a USDA employee, you must fill out this building entry form to attend the conference in person.

An agenda is available.

2024 Research Innovation and Development Grants in Economics (RIDGE) Conference

8:00-8:30 am

Arrival and Coffee

8:30-9:00 am

Introduction (RIDGE partnership)

• Parke Wilde, Professor, Tufts University
• Spiro Stefanou, Administrator, USDA's Economic Research Service
• Rich Lucas, Director, USDA's Food and Nutrition Service, Office of Policy Support

Session 1 – WIC

9:00-9:25 am

Dr. Christopher E. Anderson - Valuating Associations of WIC Food Benefit Redemption with Child Dietary Intake and Continued WIC Participation

9:25-9:50 am

Dr. Susana Matias - Maternal WIC Participation During Pregnancy and Gestational Weight Gain

9:50-10:00 am

Discussant – Irma Arteaga, Professor, University of Missouri

10:00-10:15 am

Q&A

10:15-10:30 am

Coffee break

 

Session 2 – SNAP

10:30-10:55 am

Erik James - Human Discretion in the SNAP Program: How Discretion Affects Case Outcomes and Modifies the Impacts of Interview and Recertification Waivers

10:55-11:20 am

William Clay Fannin - Exploring the Effects of SNAP Certification Interview Waivers on Program Participation Outcomes

11:20-11:45 am

Katherine Engel - The Effect of SNAP Benefit Distribution on Subjective Well-Being

11:45-11:55 am

Discussant – Laura Tiehen, USDA's Economic Research Service

11:55-12:10 pm

Q&A

12:10-1:30 pm

Lunch

Session 3 – SNAP

1:30-1:55 pm

Dr. Wenhui Feng - Did Pandemic-EBT Benefits Improve Dietary Quality?

1:55-2:20 pm

Dr. Sarah Hamersma - How Does SNAP Access Prior to Pregnancy Affect Maternal and Infant Health Outcomes?

2:20-2:45 pm

Dr. Jesse Rothstein - Student Access to SNAP Benefits During the Transition to College

2:45-2:55 pm

Discussant – Tatiana Andreyeva, Associate Professor, Rudd Center, University of Connecticut

2:55 – 3:10 pm

Q&A

Discussion and Reflection

3:10-3:20 pm

Reflections (Michele Ver Ploeg, USDA's Economic Research Service)

3:20-3:30 pm

Reflections (Norbert Wilson, Duke University)

3:30-3:50 pm

Open questions/discussion – moderated by Parke Wilde, Professor, Tufts University