Richard John Murnane (born 1945) is an economist and the Juliana W. and William Foss Thompson Professor of Education and Society at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. He has made important contributions to our understanding of education policy and the relationship between the economy and education. He has published numerous peer-reviewed articles and coauthored a number of books. His research has investigated what skills are required to earn a middle-class living in the U.S., the significance of the GED, and teacher quality. Murnane earned his Ph.D. at Yale University and is a winner of the Morningstar Family Teaching Award.

Selected publications