Lucia Smith Foster is the Chief of the Center for Economic Studies (CES) and the Chief Economist at the U.S Census Bureau in Washington, D.C.[1] Foster received a B.A.
[2][3] Foster joined the Census Bureau as a research assistant in the Center for Economic Studies (CES) while she was completing her Ph.D. at the University of Maryland.
As Chief Economist of the U.S. Census Bureau, Foster is “responsible for identifying gaps in our understanding of the dynamic and complex U.S. economy and then finding ways to fill these gaps by working with our talented staff and outside experts in researching and developing new data products and improving and enhancing existing data production.”[3] In her research, Foster uses Census microdata to research firm dynamics, productivity, and management practices.
[4] Foster and a team of other researchers proposed and established the Annual Survey of Entrepreneurs, first fielded in 2014.
[7] She is one of the key Census Bureau members of the Collaborative Micro-Productivity Project, a joint project with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which has created the public use dataset Dispersion Statistics on Productivity (DiSP)[8][9] Commerce Department Gold Medal for Leadership [10] 2016 Bronze Medal Award for Superior Federal Service – Annual Survey of Entrepreneurs [5] 2010 Bronze Medal Award for Superior Federal Service – Decennial Analysis Team [11]