Department of Economics
University of Tennessee
527A Stokely Management Center
Knoxville, TN 37996-0550
carruthers@utk.edu

Ph.D., Economics, University of Florida
Curriculum Vitae
Carruthers Homepage
Expertise: school choice and charter schools, teacher quality, teacher labor markets

Biography

Celeste K. Carruthers is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. She received her Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Florida. Dr. Carruthers is an affiliated researcher with CALDER. Her research interests include, broadly, the economics of education, public finance and economics, antitrust economics, and industrial organization and regulation.

Recently, Dr. Carruthers's research has focused on the effectiveness of charter schools, the characteristics of teachers drawn to charter schools, and the impact of faculty experience on charter student achievement.  In “The Qualifications and Classroom Performance of Teachers Moving to Charter Schools,” she characterizes the qualifications and estimated value added of traditional, mainstream public school teachers who moved to North Carolina’s charter sector. Results indicate that charter schools were drawing relatively qualified and effective licensed teachers, but that they were also drawing a high rate of less qualified, unlicensed teachers. She holds an M.A. in Economics from the University of Florida.