Valentina Duque, American University
The Effects of Free Homes on Children: Evidence from a National Experiment in Colombia
About the Presentation
We analyze the effect of Colombia’s ambitious “Free Housing” program on children’s educational outcomes. The program was generous, giving free housing to beneficiaries in desirable areas. We evaluate the program by leveraging housing lotteries and linking applicants to their children. We find that public housing increases high school graduation by seven percentage points – a seventeen percent increase relative to the control mean – and boosts exit exam scores and college-going. Exploring mechanisms, lottery winners attend better schools, their families become wealthier, and they live in higher income neighborhoods with less crime.
About the Speaker
Valentina Duque is an economist working at the intersection of health and development economics. Her research analyses how public policies and other events influence the outcomes of children and families, with a special focus on estimating long run and intergenerational impacts. Her work has contributed to three broad research areas. The first studies the effects of pervasive shocks that affect millions of families across the world—economic fluctuations, pollution, weather, and violence—on children’s human capital. The second explores the potential mitigating role of public policies to address these shocks. Duque's most recent area examines the role of housing and neighborhoods in shaping disadvantaged families’ health and socio-economic trajectories.
Seminar Format
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