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.
Durham, NC — Every year students at the North Carolina School of Science and Math (NCSSM) come together to showcase a year’s worth of research projects, culminating in a significant presentation event. Among these students were four of our student researchers who presented their in-depth investigations into various issues under the guidance of esteemed Cook…
On April 18, 2024, Cook Center Founding Director William Darity & Affiliate A. Kirsten Mullen spoke at the Inaugural Lecture for the Center for Truth, Racial Healing, and Restorative Justice at the Berkeley School of Theology. The Center at Berkley works locally and globally to offer opportunities for theological reflection, education, critique, and practice related to…
Cook Center Faculty Affiliate Bruce Orenstein was interviewed on Chicago Tonight, an evening program produced by WTTW, Chicago’s PBS Station. Bruce Orenstein is the Creator and Director of the four-part documentary series titled “Shame of Chicago, Shame of the Nation”. He was interviewed alongside series producer Chris Jenkins. Shame of Chicago, Shame of the Nation lays…
Faculty Affiliate Carliss Chatman, Professor at SMU Dedman School of Law, was quoted in a story by Marketplace examining how companies are quietly rebranding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. The article explores how some corporations are scaling back or reframing public-facing DEI language amid political scrutiny. And, that the broader landscape is more nuanced…
February 20, 2026 — A new first-of-its-kind study of nearly 3,000 adults in New York City finds significant inequities in wealth and health outcomes across the 11 most common racial and ethnic groups, showing that Black and Latino New Yorkers have less wealth and unfairly worse health outcomes compared to others. Conducted in June 2024 by…
Faculty Affiliate Omer Ali is an Assistant Professor of economics at the University of Pittsburgh, and previous postdoctoral fellow a the Cook Center. Ali is the lead researcher on a new article published in Regional Science and Urban Economics this month examining the relationship between race and home values in Durham, North Carolina. The study…
