Institute for Research on Poverty

The Institute for Research on Poverty is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research institute at the University of Wisconsin–Madison dedicated to studying poverty and economic inequality. It was established in March 1966, as a result of an agreement between UW–Madison and the Office of Economic Opportunity. It is the oldest center for poverty research still active in the United States, and had over 150 faculty affiliates from universities across the United States (as of 2017).

The key figure behind its founding was Robert Lampman, a professor of economics at UW–Madison, who also served as the Institute's interim director. Lampman expected the Institute not to last for very long, as he expected poverty in the United States to be eliminated soon after its founding.

The following people have been director of the Institute: