Title: Separation of Church and State Curricula? Examining Public and Religious Private School Textbooks (with Emileigh Harrison)

Abstract: Curricular materials not only impart knowledge but also instill values and shape collective memory. Growth in U.S. school choice programs has increased public funds directed to religious schools, but little is known about what is taught. We examine textbooks from public schools in Texas and California and from religious private and home schools, applying and improving upon artificial intelligence tools to measure topics, values, representation, and portrayal over time. Political polarization suggests a narrative of divergence, but our analysis reveals meaningful parallels between the public school collections overall, while religious textbooks differ notably, featuring less female representation, characters with lighter skin, more famous White individuals, and differential portrayal of topics such as evolution and religion. Important similarities, however, also emerge: for example, each collection portrays females in contexts that are more positive but less active and powerful than males, and depicts the U.S. founding era and slavery in similar contexts.

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Title: "Suez".

Abstract: For all its importance, we lack a comprehensive quantitative assessment of the Suez Canal’s opening in 1869. We find that it led to a 72% relative increase in bilateral exports for affected country pairs, potentially suggesting a 12% permanent increase in world trade. We also consider the composition of trade, finding that Suez led to large, concentrated changes in export shares and increased the extensive margin of exports. Finally, shipping cost calculations show that the relative cost of using steamships fell dramatically and immediately after 1869, pointing to a vital role for Suez in the diffusion of steam technology.

Title: Traumatic Financial Experiences and Persistent Changes in Financial Behavior: Evidence from the Freedman's Savings Bank 

Abstract: The failure of the Freedman's Savings Bank (FSB), one of the only Black-serving banks in the early post-bellum South, was an economic catastrophe and one of the great episodes of racial exploitation in post-Emancipation history. It was also most Black Americans' first experience of banking. Can events like these permanently alter financial preferences and behavior? To test this, we examine the impact of FSB collapse on life insurance-holding, an accessible alternative savings vehicle over the late 19th and early 20th centuries. We document a sharp and persistent increase in insurance demand in affected counties following the shock, driven disproportionately by Black customers. We also use FSB migrant flows to disentangle place-based and cohort-based effects, thus identifying psychological and cultural scarring as a distinct mechanism underlying the shift in financial behavior induced by the bank's collapse. Horizontal and intergenerational transmission of preferences help explain the shock’s persistent effects on financial behavior.

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