Adam Scavette

About Me

I am an economic advisor in the community development group at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.

As an applied microeconomist, I study topics within urban, public, labor, and housing economics. My research has been published in the Journal of Urban Economics, Economics Letters and Regional Science and Urban Economics, and covered by major media outlets including The New York Times and Bloomberg. John O'Trakoun and I developed the SOS weekly recession indicator using unemployment insurance claims data.

I earned my PhD in public policy from Rutgers University-New Brunswick in 2024, where I received the Susan S. Fainstein award for best dissertation. I also hold advanced degrees in engineering and economics from the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Edinburgh, respectively.

The views here are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia or the Federal Reserve System.

CV
Google Scholar
IDEAS/RePEc

Email: adam.scavette@phil.frb.org
X (Twitter): @adamscavette

Working Papers

• Do Research Universities Recession Proof Their Regions? Evidence from State Flagship College Towns
  with Robert Calvert Jump
  Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond Working Paper 24-05.
  Revision submitted at Journal of Economic Geography

Peer-Reviewed Publications

• A Better Sahm Rule? Introducing the SOS Recession Indicator
  with John O'Trakoun
  Economics Letters, 2025.
• JUE Insight: The Labor Market Effects of Place-Based Policies: Evidence from England's Neighbourhood Renewal Fund
  with Robert Calvert Jump
  Journal of Urban Economics, 2024.
• Aerospace Place-Based Policy: The Impact of Boeing on South Carolina's Aerospace Industry
  Economic Development Quarterly, 2024.
• The Economic Impact of a Casino Monopoly: Evidence from Atlantic City
  Regional Science and Urban Economics, 2023.
• The Impact of New Jersey’s Urban Enterprise Zones on Local Employment: A Synthetic Control Approach
  Economic Development Quarterly, 2023.
• Exploiting a Natural Hub: Turning a Stopover into a Destination
  with Leah Goldsberry
  Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, 2018.

Works in Progress

• Reversing the Natural Resource Curse: Coal Mine Closures and Poverty in Appalachia
  with David Nason and Heather Stephens
  Please Email for Draft
• Are Place-Based Policies Capitalized into Local Home Prices? Evidence from England
  with Robert Calvert Jump and Sierra Stoney
  Please Email for Draft

Federal Reserve Publications: Long Articles & Reports

• Understanding SNAP’s Role
  with Carrie Cook, Stephanie Norris and Alvaro Sánchez
  FRB Richmond: Econ Focus, 2024.
• Measuring Social Capital Across the Fifth District
  with Stephanie Norris
  FRB Richmond: Econ Focus, 2023.
• Regional Spotlight: Making Ends Meet
  FRB Philadelphia: Economic Insights, 2022.
• Broadband Subscription, Computer Use, and Labor Market Attachment across U.S. Metros
  with Alvaro Sánchez
  FRB Philadelphia: Community Development Report, 2021.
• Regional Spotlight: Evaluating Metro Unemployment Rates Throughout the Business Cycle
  FRB Philadelphia: Economic Insights, 2019.
• Exploring the Economic Effects of the Opioid Epidemic
  FRB Philadelphia: Economic Insights, 2019.
• Regional Spotlight: Purchasing Power Across the U.S.
  with Elif Sen
  FRB Philadelphia: Economic Insights, 2017.

Federal Reserve Publications: Briefs & Blog Posts (By Topic)

Workforce and Economic Development

• How to Make It in Philadelphia: Policy Takeaways from the Survey of Economic Mobility
  FRB Philadelphia: Community Development Brief, 2025.
• Boeing South Carolina's Economic Impact: Ten Years After Opening
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2024.
• Who is Supplying the Labor for Recent Employment Growth in the Rural Fifth District?
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2024.
• The Impact of the Francis Scott Key Bridge Collapse on Fifth District Firms
  with Jason Kosakow
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2024.
• Parsing the Slow Post-Pandemic Labor Market Recovery of Maryland’s Capital Suburbs
  with Keith Waters
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2023.
• The Rural Reach of ARPA’s Development Grants in the Fifth District
  with Andy Bauer
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2023.
• How the CHIPS and Science Act Will Target Economic Development in Distressed Labor Markets
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2022.
• Casinos and Regional Economies: Has the Game Changed?
  FRB Richmond: Economic Brief, 2022.
• The Role of Manufacturing in the Rural Fifth District
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2022.
• Is Urban Cool Cooling New Jersey’s Job Market?
  with Ethan Haswell
  FRB Philadelphia: Research Brief, 2016.

The Business Cycle and Inflation

• SOS! Signaling Recessions Earlier
  with John O'Trakoun
  FRB Richmond: Economic Brief, 2025.
• Are College Towns Recession Proof?
  with Robert Calvert Jump
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2024.
• Do Regional Fed Surveys Reflect National Manufacturing Conditions?
  with Jason Kosakow
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2024.
• Are Fifth District Firms Revisiting Their Prices Less Often Amid Cooling Inflation?
  with Jason Kosakow
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2024.
• Fifth District State Business Cycles
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2023.
• Firm Price-Setting Behavior Amid Elevated Price Growth: Evidence From Our Surveys
  with Jason Kosakow
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2023.
• Are We in a Recession? The ‘Anxious Index Nowcast’ Knows!
  FRB Philadelphia: Research Rap Special Report, 2014.

Housing and Demographics

• What Has Driven Recent Multifamily Rent Growth in Major Fifth District Metros?
  with Sierra Stoney
  FRB Richmond: Macro Minute, 2024.
• Understanding Immigration in the Fifth District: Where Did International Migrants Settle?
  with Surekha Carpenter
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2024.
• Urban Marylanders Are Migrating to More Affordable and Smaller Metro Areas
  with Keith Waters
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2024.
• Unlocking Housing Supply: What Can We Learn About Recent Construction and Permitting Patterns in Our Region?
  with Sierra Stoney
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2024.
• Addressing Baltimore’s Abandoned Housing
  with Peter Dolkart
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2023.

Broadband

• Digital Access Deficiencies in Rural Health Care Deserts: Identifying a Role for Telehealth
  with Alvaro Sánchez
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2024.
• The Telehealth Divide: Digital Inequity in Rural Health Care Deserts
  with Alvaro Sánchez, Pearse Haley and Sofia Tenorio Martinez
  FRB Atlanta: Partners Update, 2024.
• How to Bridge the Digital Divide? Assessing the Affordable Connectivity Program
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2022.
• The End of the Digital Divide? The Future of Broadband Post-Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA)
  FRB Richmond: Regional Matters, 2022.
• Broadband Access, Computer Use, and Labor Market Attachment in Philadelphia
  with Alvaro Sánchez
  FRB Philadelphia: Community Development Brief, 2020.