Biography
Natasha Warikoo is Lenore Stern Professor in the Social Sciences, Department of Sociology, at Tufts University. A former Guggenheim Fellow, Warikoo studies racial and ethnic inequality in education. Her book Race at the Top: Asian Americans and Whites in Pursuit of the American Dream in Suburban Schools (May 2022, University of Chicago Press), explores the growth of Asian Americans in suburban communities. In the book Is Affirmative Action Fair? The Myth of Equity in College Admissions Warikoo argues that we should rethink college admissions, and walks readers through empirical evidence suggesting the important value of affirmative action. She is also the author of The Diversity Bargain: And Other Dilemmas of Race, Admissions, and Meritocracy at Elite Universities. Warikoo is co-chair of Scholars Strategy Network Boston, which aims to connect scholars, policymakers, and community leaders to effect change. Warikoo earned her BSc/BA in mathematics and philosophy at Brown University, and her PhD in sociology at Harvard University. She is a former high school teacher. Follow her on Twitter @nkwarikoo.
Articles, Publications, and Appearances
BOOKS
(2022). Is Affirmative Action Fair? The Myth of Equity in College Admissions. Cambridge, UK: Polity Books.
(2022). Race at the Top: Asian Americans and Whites in Pursuit of the American Dream in Suburban Schools. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
(2016). The Diversity Bargain: And Other Dilemmas of Race, Admissions, and Meritocracy at Elite Universities. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Paperback released April 2019.
(2011). Balancing Acts: Youth Culture in the Global City. Berkeley: University of California Press.
SELECTED RESEARCH ARTICLES
(2021, with V. Tran). “Asian American Perspectives on Immigration Policy.” RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences, 7(2): 154-177.
(2020). “Addressing Emotional Health while Protecting Status: Asian American and White Parents in Suburban America.” American Journal of Sociology.
(2020, with Chin et al). “The Influence of Parent Expectations and Parent-Child Relationships on Mental Health in Asian American and White American Families.” Sociological Forum, 35: 275-296.
SELECTED OP-EDS
(2022). “Are Asian Americans victims of racism or beneficiaries of whiteness? It’s complex.”Boston Globe
(2022). “Why it’s time to discard old stereotypes about Asian American parents and education.” Hechinger Report
(2022). “Race at the Top: white and Asian Americans and the push for equity in education.” Q&A, The Guardian
(2022). “Why race-based affirmative action is still needed in college admissions.” The Washington Post
(2021). “Elite public schools won’t become more diverse just by ditching exams.” The Washington Post
(2018, with N. Foley). “How elite schools stay so white.” The New York Times