Sarah Hamersma

• 2025 Fall
  • PAI 810 Advanced Seminar: Policy and Administration - Applied Econ for Policy Analys
  • PAI 723 Economics for Public Decisions
• 2025 Spring
  • PAI 723 Economics for Public Decisions
  • PAI 722 Quantitative Analysis
• 2024 Spring
  • PAI 810 Advanced Seminar: Policy and Administration - Research Seminar

Sarah Hamersma is an associate professor of public administration and international affairs and a senior research associate in the Center for Policy Research. She taught at the University of Florida before coming to Syracuse University. 

Much of her most recent research focuses on health and nutrition programs, examining their consequences for food insecurity, health outcomes and labor supply. New work funded by the Cornell Population Center and Center for Aging Policy Studies (Syracuse) will investigate food assistance and labor market decisions over the life cycle in New York state.

An additional new project, funded by the USDA through the University of Kentucky Center for Poverty Research, will use the Panel Study of Income Dynamics to study the intergenerational transmission of food insecurity and the role of higher education and food assistance in breaking such transmission. Sarah received her Ph.D. in economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2004.

"How does SNAP access prior to pregnancy affect maternal and infant health outcomes?", Sponsored by Department of Agriculture.

"Keeping the 'Great Equalizer' Fed: SNAP Access and Young Adults' Educational Engagement", Sponsored by William T. Grant Foundation.

"Does Early Food Insecurity Impede the Educational Access Needed to Become Food Secure?", Sponsored by Department of Agriculture.

"Very Low Food Security and Teenage Labor Supply", Sponsored by Department of Agriculture.

• Journal Articles
  • Hamersma, S. E., Kim, M., "Does Early Food Insecurity Impede the Educational Access Needed to Become Food Secure?." Southern Economic Journal, 2025.
  • Hamersma, S. E., "Rehumanizing Health Economics." Faith and Economics, 2024.
  • Hamersma, S. E., Guldi, M., "Identifying the Effects of Pregnancy Medicaid on Mother, Infant, and Child Health." Journal of Health Economics, 2023.
  • Hamersma, S. E., Ye, J., "The Effect of Public Health Insurance Expansions on the Mental and Behavioral Health of Girls and Boys." Social Science and Medicine, 2021.
  • Hamersma, S. E., Maclean, J. ., "Insurance Expansions and Adolescent Use of Substance Use Disorder Treatment." Health Services Research, 2021.
  • Hamersma, S. E., Maclean, J. C., "Do expansions in adolescent access to public insurance affect the decisions of substance use disorder treatment providers?." Journal of Health Economics, 2021.
  • Hamersma, S. E., New York’s Recovery Drove National COVID-19 Case Reduction. Lerner Center for Public Health Promotion, 2020.
• Blog
  • Hamersma, S. E., "The Hidden Costs of Prenatal Alcohol Exposure." Institute for Family Studies blog, 2025.
• Book Reviews
  • Hamersma, S. E., Sommerville., J. C., "The Decline of the Secular University: Why the Academy Needs Religion." Faith and Economics , 2006.
  • Hamersma, S. E., Bane , M. J. and Mead, L. M., "Lifting Up the Poor: A Dialogue on Religion, Poverty, and Welfare Reform." Faith and Economics, 2004.
• Essays
  • Hamersma, S. E., "On Being a Christian Economist Adoptive Special-Needs Mom." Newsletter of the Committee on the Status of Women in the Economics Profession, 2025.
  • Hamersma, S. E., "On Being a Visible Christian Economist." Faith and Economics, 2018.
• Magazine/Trade Publications
  • Hamersma, S. E., "Uncertainty: The Beauty and Bedrock of Statistics.." Comment magazine, 2020.
  • Hamersma, S. E., "Countering Counter-Factual COVID Confusion." Convivium magazine, 2020.
  • Hamersma, S. E., "Are We Our Students’ Keepers?." Comment magazine, 2018.
  • Hamersma, S. E., Comment magazine, 2018.
  • Hamersma, S. E., "Finding Trust in the Economy." Comment magazine, 2017.
• Newspaper Article
  • Hamersma, S. E., "The Bare Minimum." New York Times op-ed, 2007.

APPAM annual meetings, Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management, "Do alcohol tax changes reduce pre-pregnancy and pregnancy alcohol consumption? Evidence from the PRAMS" (November, 2025 - November, 2025)

SEA annual meetings, Southern Economic Association, "Do alcohol tax changes reduce pre-pregnancy and pregnancy alcohol consumption? Evidence from the PRAMS" (November, 2025 - November, 2025)

SEA annual meetings, Southern Economic Association, "Implicit Theoretical Foundations of the Empirical Abortion Literature" (November, 2025 - November, 2025)

Canada FASD Conference, CanFASD, "Do alcohol tax changes reduce pre-pregnancy and pregnancy alcohol consumption? Evidence from the PRAMS" (October, 2025 - October, 2025)

Association of Christian Economists summer conference, Association of Christian Economists , "Do alcohol tax changes reduce pre-pregnancy and pregnancy alcohol consumption? Evidence from the PRAMS" (July, 2025 - July, 2025)

Institute for Research on Poverty Summer Research Workshop, University of Wisconsin, "Do alcohol tax changes reduce pre-pregnancy and pregnancy alcohol consumption? Evidence from the PRAMS" (June, 2025 - June, 2025)

9th International Research Conference on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, "Do alcohol tax changes reduce pre-pregnancy and pregnancy alcohol consumption? Evidence from the PRAMS" (March, 2025 - March, 2025)

Hamersma, S. E., McFarlane, M., APPAM annual meetings, Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management, "How does SNAP access prior to pregnancy affect maternal and infant health outcomes?" (November 21, 2024 - November 23, 2024)

Hamersma, S. E., McFarlane, M., USDA RIDGE grantee conference, USDA, "How does SNAP access prior to pregnancy affect maternal and infant health outcomes?" (October 7, 2024 - October 7, 2024)

Hamersma, S. E., Kim, M., American Society of Health Economists annual meeting, American Society of Health Economists , "SNAP Policy Variation and Educational Attainment: Evidence from the SIPP, ACS, and PSID" (June 16, 2024 - June 19, 2024)

Hamersma, S. E., Kaur, H., American Society of Health Economists annual meetings, American Society of Health Economists , "Which Counties Waive SNAP Work Requirements and How Are Caseloads Affected? " (June 16, 2024 - June 19, 2024)

Kuyper Conference, Calvin University, "Why Economists and People of Faith Need Each Other" (March 2, 2024 - March 4, 2024)

CREDO/Lumen Christi Economics and Catholic Social Thought Virtual Workshop, Catholic Research Economists Discussion Organization and Lumen Christi Institute, "Rehumanizing Health Economics" (December 8, 2023)

Hamersma, S. E., McFarlane, M., Southern Economic Association Annual Meetings, Southern Economic Association, "How does SNAP access prior to pregnancy affect maternal and infant health outcomes?" (November, 2023)

Hamersma, S. E., Kaur, H., Association of Public Policy Analysis and Management Annual Conference, APPAM, "Which Counties Waive SNAP Work Requirements and How are Caseloads Affected?" (November, 2023)

NASPAA Annual Meeting, NASPAA, "Opportunity or Burden? Providing Teaching Experiences for PhD Students" (October, 2023)

Economics for the Common Good: The Work of Christian Economists, Association of Christian Economists, "Rehumanizing Health Economics" (July, 2023)

Annual Meeting, American Society of Health Economists, "SNAP Policy Variation and Educational Attainment: Evidence from the SIPP and ACS" (June, 2023)

Southern Economic Association meetings, "SNAP Policy Variation and Educational Attainment: Evidence from the SIPP" (November, 2021)

economics seminar, University of Louisville, "Under the Same Umbrella: Public health insurance expansions and the uniformity of insurance for families" (October, 2021)

O'Hanley Family Faculty Scholar, Syracuse University (July, 2025 - June, 2028)

Best Referee for Contemporary Economic Policy in 2022, Western Economic Association (April, 2023)