Marisa Shenk’s research focuses on policies and programs to support the employment and well-being of families with low incomes, people with disabilities, and older adults.
Shenk conducts quantitative and qualitative research in several policy areas, including disability, employment and training, aging, nutrition, and opioids. She is the deputy project director for the Research Support Services for Employment of Young Adults on the Autism Spectrum project. She also leads a team of liaisons supporting the Subminimum Wage to Competitive Integrated Employment National Evaluation for the Disability Innovation Fund. In addition, Shenk has performed systematic reviews for projects such as the Clearinghouse for Labor Evaluation and Research and the Pathways to Work Evidence Clearinghouse.
Before joining Mathematica in 2015, Shenk was a research associate at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, where she analyzed trends in non-employment and transitions to the labor market. This experience sparked her interest in studying populations that face barriers to employment and bridging the gap between academic research and putting policy into practice. She holds an M.P.P. from Georgetown University.
This practice brief explores how Subminimum Wage to Competitive Integrated Employment (SWTCIE) projects engage 14(c) certificate holders to move workers from subminimum wage employment to competitive integrated employment. It summarizes results from interviews with staff from four SWTCIE projects (Indiana, Iowa, Ohio, and Texas) held in September 2023.
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