Her research interests include the effects of programs to help public housing residents relocate to better neighborhoods and schools through housing vouchers. Her work has been funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the National Science Foundation, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation, the Abell Foundation, and by a William T. Grant Foundation Scholars Award, among others. In 2006 Stefanie testified in federal court on behalf of the plaintiffs in the Baltimore Thompson v. HUD housing desegregation case. She contributes regularly to media such as the Baltimore Sun, Washington Post, The Atlantic, The New Yorker, The New York Times, National Public Radio, as well as academic journals. She is a fellow at The Century Foundation, and is a member of the policy advisory board at The Reinvestment Fund.