The Samuel DuBois Cook Center is a scholarly collaborative that studies the causes and consequences of inequality and develops remedies for these disparities and their adverse effects.
When Kelly Padalino was applying to college, her plan was simple: focus on her academics but continue dancing. Her decision to attend Duke set her on a path that combined her love of the arts and public policy, and later, a new understanding of inequality. “I definitely chose Duke because I really wanted to do…
For Dylan Tuchman, the path to law school felt almost inevitable, but not in the way one might expect. With a father and sister already in the legal field, the profession was indeed familiar territory. But her true motivation was sparked by an early love of history and focus on children’s rights. “I always loved…
Core Faculty Affiliate Keisha Bentley-Edwards led a research team in examining the way CKD and kidney failure disproportionately affect marginalized racial and ethnic populations because of structured inequalities in new paper in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology. Dr. Bentley-Edwards and her research team identify a critical need for clinical trials to identify…
Founding Director William Darity Jr. co-authored a new literature review in The BMJ that directly addresses one of the most persistent critiques of reparations: the claim that no feasible plan exists. The proposal outlines direct monetary payments as the clearest economic measure of the cumulative and intergenerational effects of white supremacy. The article argues that…
Cook Center Director William A. Darity Jr. will be among the featured speakers at an upcoming public hearing hosted by the New York State Community Commission on Reparations Remedies (NYSCCRR) on Saturday, March 21st, 2026, in Staten Island, New York. The hearing, titled “Economic Development: Quantifying Harms,” is part of the Commission’s statewide effort to…
New research co-authored by Faculty Affiliate Sarah Gaither, Associate Professor of Psychology & Neuroscience at Duke University, explores how something as routine as demographic forms can influence feelings of inclusion and identity among marginalized communities. Published in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, the study—“Enumeration or Exclusion? Demographic Forms and Latine Identity”—investigates how demographic questions may…
