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In the News: Madonna Harrington Meyer

Community-Based Food Program Limits in Reducing Older Adult Food Insecurity

Madonna Harrington Meyer and Colleen M. Heflin
Older adults who are grappling with food insecurity may enhance their food supply through community-based programs that provide free and subsidized food. But these programs can be complex, expensive, and may be difficult for older adults to use. This final brief in our older adult food insecurity series describes the limits of community-based food programs for older adults, including access, food quality, and transportation barriers. 
October 7, 2025

See related: United States

The Limits of SNAP in Addressing Older Adult Food Insecurity

Colleen M. Heflin and Madonna Harrington Meyer
This brief describes how SNAP is currently not well designed for older adults in three respects: (1) the high levels of administrative burden associated with eligibility, certification, and benefit-determination processes, (2) the low value of SNAP benefits compared with the high costs associated with redeeming them, and (3) the high levels of state variation in SNAP policies that produce substantially different conditions for SNAP depending on where one lives.
September 30, 2025

Nonfinancial Factors Shape Food Insecurity Among U.S. Older Adults

Madonna Harrington Meyer and Colleen M. Heflin
Nonfinancial factors such as poor physical and mental health, lack of access to healthy food, and transportation challenges make it more difficult for older adults to obtain, prepare, and consume healthy food. Based on the book, Food for Thought: Understanding Older Adults Food Insecurity, this brief summarizes how nonfinancial factors function as both causes and consequences of food insecurity in old age. 
September 23, 2025

Harrington Meyer Talks to HuffPost About Grandparenting Styles

“It almost doesn’t matter what kind of grandparent you are, as long as you and the parents agree. The trick is for the parents and the grandparents to agree on the roles and the rules,” says University Professor Madonna Harrington Meyer. Once that happens, “then there could be a really harmonious relationship.”

September 19, 2025

Budget Tradeoffs Shape Food Insecurity Among U.S. Older Adults

Madonna Harrington Meyer and Colleen M. Heflin
For low-income older adults, it may be difficult to meet basic needs on a fixed monthly income.  This brief summarizes how budget tradeoffs between food and other essential expenses—housing, utilities, medical care, transportation, and personal and cleaning supplies—shape food insecurity among older adults. 
September 16, 2025

See related: United States

Policy Recommendations to Reduce Old Age Food Insecurity in the United States

Colleen M. Heflin and Madonna Harrington Meyer

The current policy responses to old age food insecurity are complex, costly, and not nearly effective enough. Based on the book, Food for Thought: Understanding Older Adults Food Insecurity, this brief summarizes five policy recommendations to improve food insecurity among U.S. older adults. 

September 10, 2025

See related: United States

How is Food Insecurity Measured in the US and What Share of Older Adults are Food Insecure?

Colleen M. Heflin and Madonna Harrington Meyer
Based on the book, Food for Thought: Understanding Older Adults Food Insecurity, this brief summarizes the limitations of food insecurity measurements, noting that existing measures do not account for barriers that are common among older adults, such as mobility, physical distance, and transportation barriers.
September 9, 2025

See related: United States

Food for Thought: Understanding Older Adult Food Insecurity

Colleen Heflin, Madonna Harrington Meyer

Written by Colleen Heflin, professor of public administration and international affairs, and University Professor Madonna Harrington Meyer, the book examines the issue of food insecurity among older adults in the United States. 

September 4, 2025

Harrington Meyer Talks to The Wall Street Journal About Today's Working Grandmothers

University Professor Madonna Harrington Meyer interviewed 48 working grandmothers; all but four “said they were doing much more care for the grandchildren than they expected—and much more than their own parents did for them,” she says.

August 4, 2025

Harrington Meyer and Silverstein Featured in The Atlantic Article on Grandparenting

“I don’t think there’s anything wrong with our grandmothers,” says University Professor Madonna Harrington Meyer. “But I think there’s plenty wrong with our welfare state.”

April 16, 2025

Why is Food Insecurity High among U.S. Grandparents who are Caring for Grandchildren?

Madonna Harrington Meyer and Anna Delapaz
This brief draws on interviews with U.S. adults ages 60 and older who are caring for their grandchildren to summarize the factors contributing to food insecurity among grandparents.
January 23, 2024

Harrington Meyer Quoted in Bloomberg Article on Grandparents and the Childcare Crisis

“For a lot of families, grandparent care is the gold standard,” says University Professor Madonna Harrington Meyer, who notes that grandparents are often far more flexible than other childminders; they’ll watch your kid for free, for long or short periods of time, on little notice. They will even do it when your child is sick. 

June 9, 2023

Madonna Harrington Meyer Reappointed as University Professor

In recognition of exceptional scholarship and innovative academic and professional activities, Madonna Harrington Meyer has been reappointed to a four-year term as University Professors, one of the highest honors the University bestows on faculty members. 

May 15, 2023

Harrington Meyer Quoted in New York Times Article on Grandfathering

Overall, grandmothers still take the lead in spending time with grandchildren, often rearranging their schedules to do so, says Madonna Harrington Meyer, University Professor and author of “Grandmothers at Work: Juggling Families and Jobs” (NYU Press, 2014).

March 9, 2023

Nine Ways Grandparenting is Changing with the COVID-19 Pandemic

Madonna Harrington Meyer

This research brief describes these long-term sociodemographic changes and uses in-depth interviews conducted before the pandemic to illustrate nine specific ways grandparenting is shifting in the U.S.

May 17, 2022

Tracking COVID’s Toll

Pandemic research by Maxwell faculty and students is shaping policy and perception on everything from aging to opioid addiction.

December 21, 2021

The U.S. Should Expand Access to Dental Care for Older Adults

Madonna Harrington Meyer, Sarah Reilly, Julia M. Finan

Older adults with lower socioeconomic status tend to have worse oral health, less dental insurance coverage, greater difficulties finding a dentist, and low-quality care.

November 23, 2021

Harrington Meyer quoted in NY Times piece on vacationing with grandparents

Madonna Harrington Meyer, university professor of sociology and author of "Grandmothers at Work," is included in the New York Times article, "How to Have a Fun, Multigenerational Family Vacation." 
July 19, 2021

Maxwell scholars publish book on public policy and the life course

Janet M. Wilmoth and Andrew S. London
June 21, 2021

See related: Health Policy

Harrington Meyer talks to AARP about grandparenting special needs kids

 About 17 percent of children are diagnosed with some kind of disability, says University Professor Madonna Harrington Meyer, co-author of the book "Grandparenting Children With Disabilities." While that percentage seems to be increasing, support programs for families are not, she says.
March 2, 2021
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