Department of Economics¹
at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

The Department of Economics faculty is very active in the Centers and Programs of the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies. In addition to the entries in those sections, and to publications listed in "Papers, Books and Chapters: Published or Forthcoming," various other projects of economics department faculty are listed below. Academic programs are described in the Academic Assistance section. James Alm is Chair of the Department of Economics.

In This Page:

• Programs
• Projects
• Visitors and Presentations
  • Applied Econometrics Workshop
  • Economics Seminar Series

Highlights

• The Department has admitted 22 new doctoral students in Fall 2003, and 21 new MA-Ec students. There are now nearly 80 students in the Ph.D. program and 53 in the MA-Ec program.
• The department has 31 full-time faculty members, and will grow over the next five years to over 40 faculty, making it one of the largest economics departments in the country.
• The Department offers four unique programs in addition to its undergraduate and graduate degrees: Peace Corps Master's International Program, Indonesian Masters Program, South Africa Study Abroad Program, and the Summer Policy Internship Program.
• Economics faculty taught over 175 courses in 2003.

Programs

Graduate Teaching Assistant Training Program. The program was created in 2000 and is designed to help GTAs in Economics perform well in the classrooms. The training in 2003 was extensive. GTAs video-taped some portions of their lectures. These lectures then were analyzed by Harry Dangel, director of the Center for Teaching and Learning, together with GTAs to identify areas for improvement. The responses from GTAs who participated in the program were very positive. Yongsheng Xu manages the GTA training program, and continued collaboration with the Center for Teaching and Learning in 2003.

Faculty Recruitment. The Department hired Mark Rider as Associate Professor of Economics. He has worked previously at the Office of Tax Analysis and at Kennesaw State University. Rider earned his Ph.D. in Economics from Georgia State University, and began work in Fall 2003. The Department hired Shelby Frost as Clinical Assistant Professor of Economics in Fall 2003. She earned her Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Colorado at Boulder, and has been teaching at GSU since Fall 2000. Grant Black has been appointed visiting Assistant Research Professor, and Mikhael Melnik has been appointed visiting Assistant Professor.

Departmental Self-Study. The Department of Economics has completed its Self-Study. As a result of this internal evaluation, the GSU Provost, Ron Henry, has committed to the Department over the next 5 years the resources to hire:

• Five tenure-track assistant professors
• Two tenured senior professors
• Two non-tenure-track assistant professors to meet teaching needs
• One graduate administrator

This represents a major investment of resources in the Department, in the AYSPS centers, and in the AYSPS itself. The Self-Study was connected throughout to the goal of making the Andrew Young School the best policy school in the South. Similarly, the Action Plan was connected to the goal of hiring people who can make the research centers better because the centers are integral to the Department's and the School's vision. The Self-Study committee was comprised of Jorge Martinez-Vazquez, Kelly Edmiston, David Sjoquist, Laura Taylor and Mary Beth Walker.

Summer Intern Program. The Department continued its summer intern program, under the supervision of Neven Valev and with funding from the National Science Foundation. Eleven students from around the country attended the 6-week program, which ran from May 26 to July 12. Interns were from Swarthmore College, University of Colorado, University of Kentucky, Georgia State University, McGill University, University of Colorado, Tulane University, Berry College, Bethel College, New College of Florida, and Agnes Scott College. Research fields included fiscal reform in Tanzania, tax compliance, labor market experiences of immigrants in the U.S., income dynamics in Georgia, international bank lending, the Head Start Program, and water supply policy. The quality of applicants for this program has steadily increased; for example, more than 90 percent of the applicants had a GPA higher than 3.0. The increase in student interest may be attributed to the significantly greater visibility provided to the program by NSF funding (since 2002) and the program's listing on the NSF Web site.

Indonesian Masters Program. The Department of Economics welcomed another group of masters students from Indonesia, funded by USAID-Jakarta. After completing some initial training in Manila and Jakarta, students from throughout Indonesia arrived in Atlanta in early August to begin a one-year masters program. The second group of Indonesian Masters Students all graduated in June 2003, and returned to Indonesia after completing internships in Atlanta, and around the U.S. Two of the Indonesian MA graduates are furthering their studies at AYSPS as they began their Ph.D. coursework in Fall 2003.

South Africa Study Abroad. The May 2003 economics study abroad program was a success. Twelve students from GSU and Morehouse College traveled to South Africa for a 3-week study abroad program, under the direction of Professor Glenwood Ross of Morehouse College. The students traveled to Johannesburg, stayed in student housing at the University of Pretoria, and visited Cape Town to gain insight into the South African economy. The 2004 trip, South Africa: Its Evolving Socio-Political Economy, will take place in May and June.

Projects

Undergraduate Research Experiences in Economics. James Alm. This is a summer intern program now in its third year, funded by the National Science Foundation. (3 years, $160,000)

Indonesian Masters Degree program in Economics. James Alm, Roy Bahl, and Jorge Martinez-Vazquez. Funded by USAID-Jakarta. (Second year, $2,000,000)

Cost-Effectiveness of Five Alternative Strategies for HIV Counseling and Testing in the Emergency Room/Urgent Care Setting. Paul Farnham (with Angela Hutchinson**, Bernard Branson and Sheryl Lyss). Under development.

Estimating the Size of the Informal Sector. James Alm and Brian Erard. A project from the Internal Revenue Service. ($75,000)

Estimating the Indirect Effects of Audits: An Experimental Approach. James Alm, Betty Jackson, and Michael McKee. A project from the Internal Revenue Service. ($165,000)

Economic Impact of Georgia’s Motion Picture Industry. Kelly Edmiston. Georgia Department of Industry, Trade, and Tourism. ($4,500)

Intergovernmental Personnel Agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Paul G. Farnham. For research and consultation. (May 2003-May 2004, $46,113)

Proposal for a Cost-Benefit Analysis of the Women's Residential Ready for Work (RFW) Substance Abuse Treatment Programs in Georgia. Paul G. Farnham. Funded by the Georgia State University School of Social Work and the Georgia Department of Human Resources, Division of Family and Children's Services. (Summer 2003, $7,500 plus $2,000 for GRA support)

Staff Training in Fiscal Analysis for Indonesia's Ministry of Finance. Mark Rider. ($18,000)

National Bureau of Economic Research, Scientific Networks. Paula Stephan. (2003-2004, $29,968)

Firm Placements of New PhDs. Paula Stephan. National Science Foundation. (2003-2004, $98,098)

Jamaica Tax Review Project. Sally Wallace. ($1,000,000)

Updated Lifetime Costs of Perinatal HIV Infections. Paul Farnham (with Stephanie L. Sansom and John Anderson). Under development.

Under Review

Economic Evaluation of Substance Abuse Treatment Programs (Ready for Work). Paul G. Farnham with James L. Wolk (GSU School of Social Work). Minority Institutions' Drug Abuse Research Development Program, National Institute on Drug Abuse. ($50,000 proposal, under review)

USAID/Guyana: Training in fiscal analysis. Mark Rider. ($25,000 proposal, under review)

Government of Thailand: Training in performance budgeting. Mark Rider. ($100,000 proposal, under review)

Paul Ferraro has invited review of proposals to the National Science Foundation, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, and the Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia Proposal (Vietnam and China proposals).

Visitors and Presentations

The Economics Club speaker series hosted the seminar Terrorism Post 9.11.01- Where Are We Now? What Have We Learned? How To Prepare For The Unimaginable on Sept. 11, 2003. Guest speakers at the event were:

• Michael Dorn
  Lead Program Manager, Terrorism Emergency Preparedness and Response Division, Georgia Emergency Management Agency, Office of Homeland Security
• Dr. William L. Waugh
  Author of “International Terrorism: How Nations Respond To Terrorists,” Government Consultant on Terrorism and Disaster Management, Professor of Public Administration and Urban Studies, Georgia State University
• Sonayia (Sony) Shepherd
  State Bioterrorism/Emergency Preparedness Exercise Coordinator, Division of Public Health, Department of Human Resources
• Dr. Kelly D. Edmiston
  Assistant Professor of Economics, Georgia State University

Applied Econometrics Workshop:

Economics Seminar Series:

1. For a complete listing of AYSPS Active Research Sponsored Grants from CY2003, see the Appendix: Report on External Funding.