Doctorate - Public Policy
Georgia State University - 2015
Elizabeth Searing
Fellow, Venise Stuart Professor in Nonprofit Management and Leadership
Associate Professor of Public and Nonprofit Management
Professional Preparation
Master of Arts - Economics
Georgia State University - 2011
Georgia State University - 2011
Bachelor of Arts - Economics
Texas A&M University - 1999
Texas A&M University - 1999
Research Areas
Canadian Charitable Data Democratization
Along with Nathan Grasse from Carleton University, I have been working to make a comprehensive database of T3010 annual Canadian charity filings available to the public. This also allows exploration of numerous research questions involving the unique context of the Canadian data.Nonprofit Resiliency during Revenue Shocks
With Kimberly Wiley of the University of Florida and Sarah Young of Kennesaw State University, I explore the ways in which Illinois nonprofit organizations handled the state government shutdown. Some studies provide practical tips for nonprofits, while others suggest improvements to the way that we theorize nonprofit-government relations.The Financial Condition of Italian Social Cooperatives
With Simone Poledrini and Alessandro Montrone, I examine the economic and financial health of Italian social cooperatives, including policy options to boost the overall health of the sector.How People Give
With Sarah Jacobson of Williams College and Angela de Oliveira of UMass-Amherst, I have an NSF grant to study in-kind giving from both the donor and the nonprofit perspectives.With Tim Sarrantonio from NeonOne, I study why and how people make recurring gifts using data with giving time accurate down to the second.Publications
Charitable (Anti)Trust: The Role of Antitrust Regulation in the Nonprofit Sector - publications
Practicing Professional Ethics in Economics and Public Policy - publications
Love thy neighbor? Recessions and interpersonal trust in Latin America - publications
"Three Case Studies” in Ethical Guidance for Emerging Pervasive Information and Communication Technologies (PICT): Challenges, Opportunities, and Safeguards - publications
Pervasive Policy Uncertainty and Public Agency Responses: Managing Medicaid Managed Care Design and Implementation - publications
Appointments
Executive Transition Team
ARNOVA [2025–2025]
ARNOVA [2025–2025]
Division Chair, Public and Nonprofit Management Division
Academy of Management [2025–2025]
Academy of Management [2025–2025]
Associate Editor
Nonprofit Management and Leadership [2020–2026]
Nonprofit Management and Leadership [2020–2026]
Additional Information
Summary
Dr. Elizabeth Searing is an Associate Professor of Public and Nonprofit Management at the University of Texas at Dallas and the Fellow to the Venise Stuart Professor in Nonprofit Management and Leadership. Dr. Searing’s primary research focus is the financial management of nonprofit and social enterprise organizations, but she also conducts work on resilience, charity data, and comparative social economy more broadly. She is an Associate Editor and editorial board member of Nonprofit Management & Leadership, and an editorial advisory board member at VOLUNTAS, the Journal of Civil Society, and the Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting and Financial Management (JPBAFM). Her articles have been published in peer-reviewed journals such as the Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, Nonprofit Management & Leadership, and Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly. Dr. Searing also serves as an Adjunct Research Professor at Carleton University, Canada.Dr. Searing and Dr. Dennis Young wrote Resilience and the Management of Nonprofit Organizations: A New Paradigm (2022) and serve as the editors for the companion volume, Case Studies on Nonprofit Resilience Management (2025). Prof. Searing is also an editor of Practicing Professional Ethics in Economics and Public Policy (with D. Searing) and The Social Enterprise Zoo: A Guide to Perplexed Entrepreneurs, Philanthropists, Investors and Policymakers (with D. Young and C. Brewer). She has taught classes on the nonprofit sector (undergraduate and graduate), financial management (graduate), program evaluation (graduate), and microeconomics (undergraduate), in addition to having work experience in all three sectors. Immediately prior to her time in Texas, she was an Assistant Professor of Public Administration and Policy at the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy, University at Albany (SUNY); she is also the former Director of the Institute of Nonprofit Leadership and Community Development at the University at Albany.
Specialties: Nonprofit financial management, social enterprise, charity and foundation management, organizational ecology, behavioral economics, applied ethics