IUPRA Staff
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Kevin J.A. Thomas, PhD
Director
Kevin J.A. Thomas is a Professor of African and African Diaspora Studies and Sociology. He obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, and was a post-doctoral fellow at the Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies.
Dr. Thomas’s research focuses on international migration, global health, racial and ethnic inequality, children and families, and social change in Africa. He is the author of four books - Diverse Pathways: Race and the Socioeconomic Incorporation of Black, White, and Arab-origin Africans in the US (Michigan State University Press); Contract Workers, Risk, and the War in Iraq: Sierra Leonean Labor Migrants at US military bases (McGill-Queen’s University Press); Global Epidemics, Local Implications: African Immigrants and the Ebola crisis in Dallas (Johns Hopkins University Press); and Life After Epidemics: Ebola Survivors and the Social Dimensions of Recovery (Forthcoming, Johns Hopkins University Press).
Contact Information: kjthomas@austin.utexas.edu
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Yasmiyn Irizarry, PhD
Associate Director
Dr. Yasmiyn Irizarry is an Associate Professor of African and African Diaspora Studies and founding director of the Numbers 4 Justice Lab. She earned her Ph.D. from Indiana University.
Dr. Irizarry is a quantitative sociologist, survey methodologist, and leading expert in the emerging field of QuantCrit. Her research focuses on the critical study of race and racism in K-16 schooling contexts, racial identity and measurement, social attitudes, and justice. Much of this work considers the complex landscape of race, ethnicity, immigration, class, and place as intersecting identities, experiences, and interactions linked to systems of power. Dr. Irizarry has published in leading journals, including Educational Researcher, Social Science Research, Socius, Sociology of Race and Ethnicity, Race and Justice, and Journal of Homosexuality. Her work has been funded by the National Science Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Ford Foundation, and American Educational Research Association Grants Programs.
Contact Information: yirizarry@austin.utexas.edu
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Ricardo H. Lowe, Jr., PhD
Post Doctoral Scholar
Dr. Ricardo Henrique Lowe, Jr. is a postdoctoral scholar in Race and Public Policy at the Institute for Urban Policy Research and Analysis (IUPRA) at The University of Texas at Austin. He is a demographer, quantitative sociologist, and data scientist with six years of industry experience working as a survey statistician for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Census Bureau.
His research focuses on racial politics in census taking, race and ethnic measurement in government statistics, and critical demography, with a regional focus on Latin American and the Caribbean. Dr. Lowe joined IUPRA as a research associate in Fall of 2019 prior to his postdoctoral appointment in Fall 2023.
He earned his MS in Applied Sociology and Social Statistics from Texas State University and his BA and PhD from the University of Texas at San Antonio in Sociology and Applied Demography, respectively.
Contact Information: ricardo.lowe@austin.utexas.edu
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Lydia Okabe, PhD
Post Doctoral Scholar
Dr. Okabe is a postdoctoral scholar in Migration, Labor Market, and African Studies at the Institute for Urban Policy Research and Analysis (IUPRA) at the University of Texas at Austin. She is a demographer and quantitative researcher whose work focuses on African migration to the United States, comparing their integration in the United States and Europe. Her research also explores labor market integration, mortality, and health disparities.
Although her primary interests are in migration and labor market studies, she is committed to an interdisciplinary approach in her research. She recognizes the importance of cultivating diverse skill sets to become a well-rounded researcher equipped to address complex societal issues.
She was appointed as a postdoctoral fellow at IUPRA in the summer of 2024. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Criminal and Social Justice from Crown College, a Master’s in Public Administration from St. Mary’s University, and a PhD in Applied Demography from the University of Texas at San Antonio.
Contact Information: lydia.okabe@austin.utexas.edu
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Nicholas J. Rivera
Policy Coordinator
Nicholas earned his BA in Government with a Certificate in Human Rights & Social Justice from the University of Texas at Austin.
His policy and research focuses on racial justice movements, and its intersection between previous historical events and parallel civil rights issues. These areas health and medical disparities, poverty and displacement, and various social issue discrimination.
Contact Information: nicholasjrivera@austin.utexas.edu
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Pedro Valdez-Castro, M.A.
Research Associate
Pedro Valdez-Castro, M.A. is a Research Associate in Afro-descendant Latin America and the Caribbean at the Institute for Urban Policy Analysis and Research (IUPRA) at the University of Texas at Austin. He is a qualitative sociologist with experience in applied research for policy-making. Previously, he worked for the Dominican Republic government and international organizations, producing data, advising on migration governance, and training personnel. Pedro's research centers on the effect of racialized migration policies on Afro-Caribbean migrants and Caribbean migration routes to the United States. He is the author and co-author of various scientific articles, policy reports, book chapters, and a book. He is an alumni of the Fulbright Faculty Development Program, the Tinker Foundation, and the Brumley Graduate Fellowship. Pedro holds a bachelor's degree in Sociology from the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo, a specialization graduate degree in Afro-Latin American and Caribbean Studies from CLACSO/FLACSO-Brazil, and a master's degree in Latin American Studies from the University of Texas at Austin. Contact Information: pvaldezcastro@utexas.edu
