American Institutes for Research

Ben Backes is currently a senior researcher at AIR. His 2012 dissertation focused on the impact of statewide bans on the use of racial preferences in college admissions.

Dr. Backes has published papers on several topics, including whether affirmative action bans depressed minority college enrollment rates, and whether the bans discouraged minority students from applying to college. He is currently exploring how universities changed their admissions rules in response to affirmative action bans, and how these new admissions rules affected students’ human capital investment decisions prior to entering college.