Hi, my name is Soomi Lee.
I am a Professor in the Department of Public Administration and Director to oversee the Master of Public Administration program (MPA) at the University of La Verne. As an interdisciplinary public policy scholar, my research spans public finance, political economy, and urban economics, focusing on how institutional and structural factors shape economic distribution and equity. Specific research areas include residential property tax policies, regional integration, public policy issues like homelessness, green gentrification, and guaranteed income.
I am an associate editor for the Annals of Regional Science and an editorial board member for the Regional Science Policy & Practice. I serve on the executive board of the Western Regional Science Association and the United States Basic Income Guarantee. I earned a Ph.D. in Economics and Political Science from the Claremont Graduate University.
You may reach me at slee4@laverne.edu