This is the second time an NYU professor has captured the award. Gang Tian, a professor formerly at NYU's Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, received the honor in 1994.
Conley has written The Starting Gate: Birth Weight and Life Chances (University of California, 2003), with Kate Strully and Neil Bennett, Honky (University of California, 2000), and Being Black, Living in the Red: Race, Wealth, and Social Policy in America (University of California, 1999). Conley has also authored or co-authored dozens of journal articles and book chapters. His op/eds have appeared in numerous publications, including the New York Times, Time magazine (international edition), USA Today, the Los Angeles Times, the Guardian (U.K.), and France's Le Monde.
Conley's most recent book, The Pecking Order (Pantheon, 2005), has drawn wide acclaim: "Conley turns conventional wisdom on its head" (New York Times), "From the first page, this book is engaging," (Seattle Times), "Don't get too attached to tidy assumptions…The Pecking Order is bound to shatter them" (Detroit Free Press). The Washington Post called Conley's work "one of the most distinguished books" of 2004.
Conley received a B.A. (1990) from the University of California, Berkeley, an M.P.A.(1992) from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs, and a Ph.D. (1996) in sociology from Columbia. Currently a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research and an adjunct professor of community medicine at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Conley has been an assistant and visiting associate professor at Yale University and a visiting associate professor at Princeton University. Conley also has an affiliated appointment at NYU's Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. He has received several grants, including a National Science Foundation Career award and a Robert Wood Johnson Investigator award.
Congress established the Alan T. Waterman Award in August 1975 to mark the 25th Anniversary of the National Science Foundation and to honor its first director. The annual award recognizes an outstanding young researcher. In addition to a medal, the awardee receives a grant of $500,000 over a three-year period for scientific research or advanced study in the mathematical, physical, medical, biological, engineering, social, or other sciences at the institution of the recipient's choice. Candidates must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents, and may not be more than 35 years old, or seven years beyond receiving a Ph.D., by the end of the year in which nominated.
EDITOR'S NOTE
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