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 Office of Academic Assistance section. James Alm is Chair of the Department of Economics.

In This Section:

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

Highlights

• The Department admitted 17 new doctoral students in fall 2004, and 14 new M.A.-Ec students. There are now nearly 73 students in the Ph.D. program and 40 in the M.A.-Ec program.
• In spring 2004, 2,456 students were enrolled in economics courses; in summer 2004, 1,074 were enrolled; in fall 2004, 2,894 were enrolled.
• The department hired five new faculty members and still is looking for three more to create one of the largest economics departments in the country.
• The Department offers three unique programs in addition to its undergraduate and graduate degrees: Peace Corps Master's International Program, South Africa Study Abroad Program, and the Summer Policy Internship Program.
• Economics faculty and staff taught over 170 courses in 2004.

Programs

Graduate Teaching Assistant Training Program. This program was created in 2000 to help GTAs in Economics perform well in the classroom. The training in 2004 again was extensive. GTAs videotaped some portions of their lectures, which then were analyzed by Harry Dangel, director of the Center for Teaching and Learning. Dangel worked with the GTAs to identify areas for improvement. The responses from GTAs who participated in the program were very positive. The GTA Undergraduate Teaching Committee for 2004-2005 consists of Shelby Frost, Jon Mansfield and Elizabeth Nelson.

Faculty Recruitment. The Department welcomed five new professors in 2004.

• Visiting Assistant Professor Douglas Campbell completed his doctoral dissertation at Georgia State University on development impact fees in March 2004. His specialties include State and Local Public Finance, Tax Incidence, Local Banking Markets, and Spatial Econometrics.
• Assistant Professor Gary A. Hoover received his Ph.D. from Washington University in St. Louis. His work generally deals with governmental institutional efficiency in operations, and his specialties include Public Policy Analysis, Public Finance, Income Distribution, and Labor Economics.
• Assistant Professor Douglas J. Krupka received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago School of Public Policy, where he also earned his masters degree in 1997. His primary interests are in Labor and Urban Economics.
• Assistant Professor Inas Rashad received her Ph.D. from CUNY Graduate Center in New York. Her specialties include Health Economics, Labor Economics, and Public Finance, and her current research is centered around the rapid acceleration in the U.S. obesity rate and in finding causes and solutions for the epidemic.
• Research Associate Professor Peter Terrebonne received his Ph.D. from Emory University. He is working primarily with the Environmental Policy Program to advance research on water policy issues; he has published papers on microeconomics and environmental policy.

Summer Intern Program. The Department continued its Research Experiences for Undergraduates summer intern program, under the supervision of Neven Valev and with funding from the National Science Foundation. Ten students from around the country attended the 7-week program, which ran from May 31 to July 16, 2004. Interns were from Georgetown University, Georgia State University, Notre Dame University, Rice University, University of Michigan, Shippensburg University, the University of Georgia, the University of Washington, State University of New York at Albany, and Williams College. Research projects included business cycles convergence in the European Union, tax incentives in the Caribbean nations, the geography of income and poverty in Atlanta, the Head Start Program, and tax reform in Tanzania. The program is very competitive with over 100 applicants. Many graduates of the program have enrolled in top Ph.D. programs in Economics such as Princeton, Minnesota, and UNC, Chapel Hill.

Indonesian Masters Program. The Indonesian Masters Program currently consists of five Ph.D. students. Three students from the first year program and two from the second year program remained in the U.S. to finish their studies at AYSPS and complete their doctorate degrees. The students from the first program have now finished almost all their coursework and have begun their dissertation writing process. The program is co-directed by James Alm and Jorge Martinez-Vazquez.

South Africa Study Abroad. The May 2004 economics study abroad program, South Africa: Its Evolving Socio-Political Economy, was a rousing success. Nine students from GSU and Morehouse College traveled to South Africa for a 2-week study abroad program, under the direction of Glenwood Ross of Morehouse College. While in South Africa, the students were presented with lectures on various aspects of the South African economy and of sub-Saharan Africa in general. Lectures were held at the University of Pretoria, The University of Cape Town, and the Department of Trade and Industry in Johannesburg. In addition to learning about the economy, the students were exposed to South African culture, history, and political environment through museum visits, city and homeland tours, and trips to the informal settlements. A major highlight of the trip was the visit to Robben Island, where the students learned more about the struggles of Nelson Mandela and other anti-apartheid political prisoners.

The study abroad program was split between the Pretoria/Johannesburg area and Cape Town. While in the Pretoria/Johannesburg area, the student travelers stayed at Olympic athlete training facilities on the campus of the University of Pretoria; in Cape Town, lodging was provided at the Victoria Junction Hotel near the Cape Town waterfront. Students also had overnights at a safari game park and in a tribal village. The 2004 Economic Studies Abroad in South Africa Program was a great learning and fun experience for all, and the 2005 version promises to be just as fact- and fun-filled as its predecessor. The 2005 Program will take place during the GSU Maymester.

Projects

Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) Research Participation Fellowship at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Paul G. Farnham. (2004-05, $70,000)

Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfers Training Program. (USAID/Guyana). Mark Rider. ($25,000)

India Exchange Program. (USAID). Mark Rider. ($150,000)

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

Undergraduate Research Experiences in Economics. (National Science Foundation). James Alm. This project funds a summer intern program, now in its third year. (2002-2004, $160,000)

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

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

National Science Foundation. Paula E. Stephan. ($32,550)

National Bureau of Economic Research. Paula E. Stephan. ($14,941)

Child Policy Speaker Series. (Arthur Blank Family Foundation). Erdal Tekin. ($10,000)

Socio-economic Status and Longer-Term Effects of Child Abuse. (National Institute of Health). Erdal Tekin with Janet Currie. (Pending, $250,000)

Identifying Agent-Specific Influences in the Brokerage Process. (National Center for Real Estate Research). Geoffrey K. Turnbull with Jonathan Dombrow (DePaul University). ($17,500)

Proposals Under Review

National Science Foundation. Neven Valev and James Alm. Grant proposal for continued funding of the Summer Internship Program during the next three years. (Under review)

National Science Foundation. Neven Valev. Grant proposal for continued funding for national surveys on currency board credibility in Bulgaria during the next three years. (Under review)

The National Council for Eurasian and East European Research. Neven Valev. Grant proposal prepared and ready to submit for funding research on public attitudes toward the approaching adoption of the euro in Bulgaria. (In progress)

Visitors and Presentations

The Economics Club arranged and hosted the following presentations:

Applied Econometrics Workshop:

Economics Seminar Series: