Prior to joining the faculty at MSU, Dr. Thomas was a researcher with the Texas Schools Project at The University of Texas at Dallas. Dr. Thomas maintains her affiliation with the Texas Schools Project and is currently using longitudinal student-level education data to examine access to arts education and how arts participation influences education outcomes using experimental and quasi-experimental techniques. Her current research is funded by the Spencer Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts. Dr. Thomas’ research has been published in numerous peer reviewed journals including Economics Letters, Southern Economic Journal, Journal of Cultural Economics, and Economics of Education Review. Dr. Thomas earned her Ph.D. in economics from the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University in 2000.