John Irons

John Irons joined the Rockefeller Foundation in 2012. As Managing Director of Foundation Initiatives, he leads much of the Foundation’s work in the United States, particularly initiatives on employment, and contributes more broadly to economic analysis of our work. His focus includes the Sustainable Employment in a Green US Economy (SEGUE) Initiative, catalyzing the development of jobs in the green economy; the Brookings–Rockefeller Project on State and Metropolitan Innovation, focusing on metro and regional approaches to economic development; and an analysis of transitional jobs programs in the U.S.

Prior to joining the Rockefeller Foundation, Dr. Irons was the Research Director at the Economic Policy Institute in Washington, D.C., as well as other policy think tanks. He was a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Economics at Amherst College and has worked at the Federal Reserve Board of Governors.

Dr. Irons has authored numerous reports and articles on tax and budget policy, and broader economic analysis. His articles have appeared in several journals including the Journal of Monetary Economics and the Journal of Applied Econometrics. Dr. Irons is co-editor of Testing Exogeneity, published by Oxford University Press. He has won several awards for his economics websites, including top-five awards from The Economist and Forbes.

Dr. Irons holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Swarthmore College and a Ph.D. in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.