Donna Ginther, the Roy A. Roberts & Regents Distinguished Professor of Economics at the University of Kansas, was awarded the 2025 Carolyn Shaw Bell Award from the American Economic Association. The honor recognizes individuals who have furthered the status of women in the economics profession.
As a labor economist, Dr. Ginther conducts extensive research on labor markets, gender differences in employment outcomes, wage inequality, science policy, and investments in children. Throughout her career, she has worked to advance opportunities for women economists both in the profession and in academia. Some of her most notable projects have centered on understanding and addressing barriers for women in the field, leading her to develop leadership workshops and mentoring programs designed to improve the retention of pre-tenure women economists.
At the University of Kansas, Dr. Ginther serves as director of the Institute for Policy & Social Research and director of the Center for Science, Technology, and Economic Policy. Before joining the university, she was a research economist and associate policy adviser in the regional group of the research department of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. She has previously taught at Washington University in St. Louis and Southern Methodist University in Dallas. Dr. Ginther is the co-editor of Technology, Growth, and the Labor Market (Springer, 2002).
Dr. Ginther earned her bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, and Ph.D. all in economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.