Letter from Economics Professor and Chair Rob Fairlie - 2015
It was another eventful year for the Economics Department. We welcomed Ajay Shenoy as a new assistant professor, we hired two new faculty members for next year, we held the second consecutive alumni event as part of the campus-wide 50th anniversary celebration, and we welcomed the first class of students into the much anticipated return of the masters program in applied economics and finance (APEF). Although the faculty and staff had another busy year with research, teaching and running the department, the biggest accomplishment by the Economics Department this year will be granting B.A. degrees to approximately 500 students, M.S. degrees to 24 students, and Ph.D. degrees to 8 students. Congratulations to all of them!
In April the department held its second consecutive alumni event during the campus-wide Alumni Weekend.
As part of UCSC's 50th anniversary celebration, the department hosted an event that brought together economics alumni, current and emeriti faculty and current students for an informal breakfast in the engineering courtyard. There were short presentations on the department's teaching and research activities, current issues in macroeconomics (by Carl Walsh), and accounting programs (by Bob Shepherd). Of special note, Jack Michaelson, one of the original founding members of UCSC and previous Economics Department chair for many years, attended the event. Also in attendance were David Kaun (hired in the second year of UCSC's existence) and Donald Wittman (hired in year 5). Our excellent student organizations, Delta Sigma Pi, Gesher Group, Scholars of Accounting Society, and Students for Professional Development, helped with running the event and got a chance to meet with alumni.
The department was busy this year welcoming back the new and improved one-year APEF M.S. The first class of 24 students started in the fall 2014 and will graduate in June 2015. The program provides extensive analytical training in economics, finance and econometrics designed to prepare students for careers in business, international and domestic banking, consulting firms, government, and nonprofit organizations. Past graduates have gone on to successful careers in the private and public sectors with placements at a diverse range of companies and institutions, as well as to other graduate programs including Ph.D. programs in economics. We expect this year's graduates to do the same.
This year we also welcomed new assistant professor, Ajay Shenoy. Ajay completed his Ph.D. at the University of Michigan. He teaches and conducts research in development, growth and macroeconomics. His research focuses on the consequences of market failures, risk, and bribery in developing countries.
We are also excited to successfully recruit not one, but two, new faculty members from a pool of 265 applicants. In summer 2015, we will be welcoming Kristian Lopez Vargas and Natalia Lazzati to the department. Kristian recently completed his Ph.D. at the University of Maryland, and teaches and conducts research in behavioral and experimental economics and microeconomic theory. Natalia completed her Ph.D. at the University of Arizona and was an assistant professor at the University of Michigan for four years. She teaches and conducts research in microeconomic theory, industrial organization, econometrics, and experimental economics.
We also witnessed two retirements this year: Mike Dooley and Bernie Elbaum. Mike was recruited to UCSC in 1992 to provide senior leadership in building our new Ph.D. program in international economics, and he did just that. He advised many Ph.D. students over the years, challenging them to achieve research excellence, and pushing their careers around the world in academia, central banks and international institutions. Mike's inquiring mind and participation in the intellectual life of the department will be sorely missed. At the same time, we wish him well in his next adventures and life on the east coast, and look forward to seeing him at conferences, workshops and fishing occasionally on the Monterey Bay! Bernie was recruited to UCSC in 1986 as an assistant professor. Bernie was instrumental in developing the department's offerings in economic history, and has taught numerous other courses for the department over the years. We will miss Bernie, and wish him well in his next adventures!
