

McGuinn Hall 308
Telephone: 617-552-1612
Email: vincent.fusaro@bc.edu
Experiences of material hardship, low-wage work, federalism and social welfare, effects of policies and programs on economic well-being
Vincent A. Fusaro, Ph.D., examines policies and programs that affect the economic and material well-being of low-income households in the United States, especially households with children. Jointly trained as a social work researcher and a political scientist, his work follows three main tracks: understanding the challenges facing low-income households, identifying the effects of policies and programs that address household well-being, and considering the social, political, and economic influences on social welfare policy design and implementation. Within these areas, he is particularly interested in the role of states in social welfare. His research agenda encompasses topics including food insecurity, housing instability and homelessness, low-wage work, racial and ethnic disparities in well-being, and federalism.
Fusaro, V. A. (accepted for publication). TANF as state funding stream: Implications for social work and social policy. Social Work.
Fusaro, V.A. (in press). States & cash assistance under Temporary Assistance for Needy Families: Race, politics, and policy structure. Policy Studies Journal.
Shaefer, H.L., Edin, K., Fusaro, V.A., & Wu, P. (2020). The decline of cash assistance and the well-being of poor children. Social Forces, 98(3), 1000-1025.
Krings, A., Fusaro, V.A., Lee, N.Y., & Nicoll, K. L. (2019). Social work, politics, and social policy education: Applying a multidimensional framework of power. Journal of Social Work Education, 55(2), 224-237.
Fusaro, V., Levy, H., & Shaefer, H.L. (2018). Racial and ethnic disparities in the lifetime prevalence of homelessness in the United States. Demography, 55(6), 2119-2128.
Fahs-Beck Fund for Research and Experimentation Doctoral Dissertation Grant, 2015
Gerald R. Ford Fellowship, University of Michigan Department of Political Science, 2015-2017
2018: Outstanding Social Work Doctoral Dissertation Award, Society for Social Work and Research
2016: Robert L. Schneider Dissertation Award, Influencing Social Policy
2016: Henry Meyer Award, University of Michigan School of Social Work