Jane L. Ross

Director, Academy Board of Directors

Director, Committee on Law and Justice
National Research Council of the National Academies

Jane L. Ross, a newly elected member of the Academy’s Board of Directors, is Director of the Committee on Law and Justice at the National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academies. This Committee aims to increase the scientific basis for addressing crime and justice issues and policies. She previously directed the Center for Economic, Governance and International Studies at the NRC, which aims to enhance the social science underpinning for public policy issues.

Previously, Ross was the Deputy Commissioner for Policy at the Social Security Administration (SSA), where she advised the Commissioner of Social Security on policy issues, as well as led the policy analysis and research office. Ross spent several years as the Director for Income Security Issues and Senior Assistant Director for Medicare and Medicaid Issues at the U.S. General Accounting Office. Prior to that, Ross was the Deputy Associate Commissioner for Policy and the Director of the Office of Research, Statistics, and International Policy at the Social Security Administration (SSA). Ross received her Ph.D. in economics from American University.

Former Commissioner of Social Security, Kenneth S. Apfel (and also immediate past Chair of the Academy Board and a current Board member) has been a colleague of Ross for many years:

“Jane Ross has remarkably wide and deep experience in social insurance. During her years at SSA and at GAO, she led efforts to strengthen the management of Social Security, as well as advance policy research on Social Security. She is a real treasure!”

Well-versed in income security policy, Ross has served as a consultant to the social security system of Bulgaria on policy analysis and strategic planning matters. Ross has written and spoken on the long-range financing of social security, the role of social security in the financial security of women, and the importance of financial planning for retirement. For several years, Ross served on the Board of Directors of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare (NCPSSM). She was chairman of NCPSSM’s Board for three years.

A founding member of the National Academy of Social Insurance, Ross was elected to serve on the Academy’s Board of Directors in April 2010. She also serves on the Academy’s Finance Committee. Ross was a member of the Academy’s Uncharted Waters Study Panel, which honed in on the benefits to be paid under different proposals for individual accounts. She is also involved in the Academy’s leadership development programs, including providing an opportunity for 2010 Washington Intern, Benjamin Galick, to intern at the National Research Council.

In her free time, Ross works with Maryland organizations that support legislation to improve the economic and personal security of women. She’s also involved in campaigns to increase the number of progressive women holding elective state and local government offices. Her favorite leisure activity is spending time with her six grandchildren.

Director, Committee on Law and Justice
National Research Council of the National Academies

Jane L. Ross, a newly elected member of the Academy’s Board of Directors, is Director of the Committee on Law and Justice at the National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academies. This Committee aims to increase the scientific basis for addressing crime and justice issues and policies. She previously directed the Center for Economic, Governance and International Studies at the NRC, which aims to enhance the social science underpinning for public policy issues.

Previously, Ross was the Deputy Commissioner for Policy at the Social Security Administration (SSA), where she advised the Commissioner of Social Security on policy issues, as well as led the policy analysis and research office. Ross spent several years as the Director for Income Security Issues and Senior Assistant Director for Medicare and Medicaid Issues at the U.S. General Accounting Office. Prior to that, Ross was the Deputy Associate Commissioner for Policy and the Director of the Office of Research, Statistics, and International Policy at the Social Security Administration (SSA). Ross received her Ph.D. in economics from American University.

Former Commissioner of Social Security, Kenneth S. Apfel (and also immediate past Chair of the Academy Board and a current Board member) has been a colleague of Ross for many years:

“Jane Ross has remarkably wide and deep experience in social insurance. During her years at SSA and at GAO, she led efforts to strengthen the management of Social Security, as well as advance policy research on Social Security. She is a real treasure!”

Well-versed in income security policy, Ross has served as a consultant to the social security system of Bulgaria on policy analysis and strategic planning matters. Ross has written and spoken on the long-range financing of social security, the role of social security in the financial security of women, and the importance of financial planning for retirement. For several years, Ross served on the Board of Directors of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare (NCPSSM). She was chairman of NCPSSM’s Board for three years.

A founding member of the National Academy of Social Insurance, Ross was elected to serve on the Academy’s Board of Directors in April 2010. She also serves on the Academy’s Finance Committee. Ross was a member of the Academy’s Uncharted Waters Study Panel, which honed in on the benefits to be paid under different proposals for individual accounts. She is also involved in the Academy’s leadership development programs, including providing an opportunity for 2010 Washington Intern, Benjamin Galick, to intern at the National Research Council.

In her free time, Ross works with Maryland organizations that support legislation to improve the economic and personal security of women. She’s also involved in campaigns to increase the number of progressive women holding elective state and local government offices. Her favorite leisure activity is spending time with her six grandchildren.

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