Jens Ludwig

  • Title: Edwin A. and Betty L. Bergman Distinguished Service Professor
  • Education: PhD, Duke University; BA, Rutgers University, New Brunswick
  • Joined UChicago faculty: 2007
  • jludwig@uchicago.edu
  • @profjensludwig

Jens Ludwig

Jens Ludwig is the Edwin A. and Betty L. Bergman Distinguished Service Professor at the University of Chicago, Pritzker Director of the University of Chicago’s Crime Lab, and co-director of the Education Lab. He helped found the Crime Lab and Education Lab to work closely with the public sector to solve pressing social problems. These partnerships have led to important policy changes in cities around the country, including Chicago and New York, and have been featured in national news outlets such as the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, PBS News Hour, and National Public Radio, and the scientific basis for these policies have been published in leading peer-reviewed journals like the American Economic Review, the Quarterly Journal of Economics, Science, and Nature. In 2012 he was elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies of Science.

Media Contact

Elisa Xu

Media Relations Analyst

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Expertise

Guns, Urban studies

Ludwig Stories

Young black men face daunting odds in life. These programs can help

Article cites Prof. Jens Ludwig, co-director of UChicago Crime Lab, who discusses the difficulties facing students in disadvantaged circumstances


Where Poor Kids Grow Up Makes A Huge Difference

Audio: Research co-authored by Prof. Jens Ludwig finds that where poor children grow up significantly affects how much money they make as adults


The U.S. Spends Far More on Homeowner Subsidies Than It Does on Affordable Housing

Research by Prof. Jens Ludwig finds America spends almost four times on subsidizing middle-class homeowners as it does for low-income housing


Does Moving Poor People Work?

Article cites study by Prof. Jens Ludwig, which finds mixed results when low-income families moved to low poverty areas


Why big data has some big problems when it comes to public policy

Article cites Prof. Jens Ludwig, who explains difficulty of having government take data trends into account when making policy decisions