Biography
I am Assistant Professor at the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. My research interests are Development Economics and Gender, with a primary focus on Population, Health and Education issues.
Research Interests
Catalina studies issues at the intersection of demographic economics, gender, health, and education in developing countries. Her research examines whether fertility decisions affect women’s human capital and economic outcomes, what type of policy interventions can decrease women’s barriers to health care access, how childhood conditions can affect later economic outcomes in adulthood, and whether public policies can mitigate the long-run effects of adverse shocks, such as natural disasters, on human capital.
Additional Campus Affiliations
Assistant Professor, Agricultural and Consumer Economics
Assistant Professor, Center for the Study of Global Gender Equity
Assistant Professor, Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies
Assistant Professor, Center for African Studies
Recent Publications
Chimbutane, F., Karachiwalla, N., Herrera-Almanza, C., Leight, J., & Lauchande, C. (2026). The effect of teacher training and community literacy programming on teacher and student outcomes. Journal of Development Economics, 178, Article 103578. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdeveco.2025.103578
Herrera-Almanza, C., & Seitz McCarthy, A. (2025). Strategic responses to disparities in spousal desired fertility: experimental evidence from rural Tanzania. Journal of Population Economics, 38(4), Article 85. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00148-025-01142-y
Vincent, S., Herrera-Almanza, C., Anukriti, S., & Karra, M. (2025). Contraceptive Concordance. Studies in family planning, 56(3), 532-549. https://doi.org/10.1111/sifp.70018
Herrera-Almanza, C., Marquez-Padilla, F., & Prina, S. (2024). C-Sections, Obesity, and Healthcare Specialization: Evidence from Mexico. World Bank Economic Review, 38(1), 139-160. https://doi.org/10.1093/wber/lhad022
Chimbutane, F., Herrera-Almanza, C., Karachiwalla, N., Lauchande, C., & Leight, J. (2023). COVID-19 school closures and mental health of adolescent students: Evidence from rural Mozambique. SSM - Mental Health, 3, Article 100203. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssmmh.2023.100203