Darrick Hamilton is a pioneer and internationally recognized scholar in the field of stratification economics, which fuses social science methods to examine the causes, consequences and remedies of racial, gender, ethnic, tribal, nativity, etc. inequality in education, economic and health outcomes. This work involves crafting and implementing innovative routes and policies that break down social hierarchy, empower people, and move society towards greater equity, inclusion, and civic participation.

Professor Hamilton is Henry Cohen Professor of Economics and Urban Policy, and the founding Director of the Institute for the Study of Race, Stratification and Political Economy at The New School. He is also the former Executive Director of the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity at The Ohio State University. 

He was born and raised in the Bedford Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, NY. He is a graduate of Oberlin College and earned a PhD in economics from the University of North Carolina; he completed postdoctoral appointments at the University of Michigan and Yale University, respectively. He is frequently cited in the media, consults with various public official and serves as an advisor to several nonprofit organizations