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Renowned economist Raj Chetty was named an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters at Wesleyan’s 192nd Commencement ceremony. In his speech to the Class of 2024, he cited his research into opportunity disparity’s effect on social mobility, praising Wesleyan for being a leader in expanding access to higher education.
“When a child moves to a neighborhood with better schools or gets a chance to attend a high-quality college, we see their lives transformed relative to other comparable kids who didn’t get the same chances,” Chetty said. “Opportunity matters. And education is one of the keys that opens the doors of opportunity.”
He continued, “I am especially honored to receive this degree from an institution that is setting an example for society to follow. My challenge to all of you is to build on this example and make the world a better, fairer place by using your education to inspire and spread opportunity to those around you. Your success will be all of our success…. And I wish you the very best of luck.”
Chetty is the William A Ackman Professor of Public Economics at Harvard University. He is also the director of Opportunity Insights, which uses “big data” to understand how we can give children from disadvantaged backgrounds better chances of succeeding. His work on topics ranging from tax policy and unemployment insurance to education and affordable housing has been widely cited in academia, media outlets, and congressional testimony. Chetty received his PhD from Harvard University in 2003 and is one of the youngest-tenured professors in Harvard’s history. He has received numerous awards for his research, including a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship and the John Bates Clark medal, given to the economist under 40 whose work is judged to have made the most significant contribution to the field.
