Congratulations to Western Economics’ 2011-2012 Graduate and Undergraduate Teaching Award Winners

Western Economics is pleased to announce that Maria Goltsman was nominated by the graduate students as Graduate Professor of the Year and Jeannie Gillmore was nominated by the undergraduate students as Undergraduate Professor of the Year. Both will receive commemorative plaques.

Hiroaki Mori was selected as the Graduate Teaching Assistant of the Year. Hiroaki will be awarded a prize of $200 and will receive a commemorative plaque. George Orlov and Brandon Malloy were selected by the first year class as Tutorial Leaders of the Year. George and Brandon will each be awarded a prize of $100 and both will receive commemorative plaques.

T. Merritt Brown and Summer Paper Prizes

The 2011 winner of the T. Merritt Brown Thesis Prize valued at $400 is Kai (Jackie) Zhao, currently an Assistant Professor of Finance in Western’s DAN Management and Organizational Studies program. Created in recognition of the late Professor Brown’s outstanding contributions in econometrics, this prize is awarded to a graduate student who has produced exceptional work deemed appropriate to receive such an honor.

The 2011 winner of the Summer Paper Prize valued at $200 is Aaron Gertz. This prize is awarded to the graduate student who, at the end of their second year, produces the best research paper during the summer term. Winners are chosen by the Graduate Awards Committee amongst those nominated by their advisors.

Jim MacGee – Op-Ed in the Financial Post

An op-ed piece in the Financial Post April 4, 2012, entitled "Consumer Debt: Concerning But Not Critical," written by Jim MacGee (with Philippe Bergevin) offers an overall message that although Canadian household debt levels as a percentage of income are higher than those of U.S. households — and higher than at any point in recent history — Canadian consumer debt is cause for concern, but not panic. MacGee explains that, because of more cautious lending standards in Canada, consumer debt should remain manageable.

Chris Robinson – Research on The Transferability of Skills

Chris Robinson, Affiliate of the CIBC Centre for Human Capital and Productivity, and author of the Centre’s newly released Policy Brief 4 entitled "The Transferability of Skills" (with Maxim Poletaev) discusses the transferability of skills across jobs and occupations. Evidence suggests that displaced workers finding new employment in jobs using similar skills experience significantly smaller wage losses than those taking new jobs in occupations that utilize a vastly different set of skills. Workers find their way back to more similar jobs than would occur with random mobility, and they are increasingly finding their way back to more similar jobs in recent years.

See additional information on this brief and an interview with Chris Robinson on the transferability of skills.

Killam Prize

The Canada Council of Canada awarded John Whalley one of five 2012 Killam Prizes of $100,000 in recognition of outstanding career achievements. This award is among Canada’s most distinguished research awards. John Whalley is Canada’s leading research economist and is one of Western’s most eminent and productive scholars. His research is path-breaking, wide-ranging and prolific. His long-term contributions to Canadian culture and identity through work on trade policy, tax policy, and interprovincial issues continue today. His current focus on the large emerging economies, especially China, and climate policy is producing further enduring impact. Western Economics congratulates John Whalley on this award and is proud of his many accomplishments. The Globe and Mail

Social Science Faculty Scholar Award

Lance Lochner has been named a Social Science Faculty Scholar Award winner for 2012. The award recognizes faculty members for their achievements in both teaching and research. Lochner will hold the Faculty Scholar title for two years and receive $14,000 for his scholarly activities.

Bank of Montreal Professorship

The Department of Economics congratulates Jim MacGee, who has been named the next holder of the Bank of Montreal Professorship, for the period January 1, 2012 to June 30, 2015. This Professorship was created through a generous gift to the University from the Bank of Montreal, and is rotated every five years between Economics and the Richard Ivey School of Business.

University Students' Council - Teaching Honour Roll Certificate 2010-2011

Congratulations to David Rivers and Greg Pavlov on receiving a USC Teaching Honour Roll Certificate for the 2010-2011 academic year. This award is given to instructors who receive an accumulated average of 6.3 or higher out of 7 on the first 14 questions of the Western Senate-mandated course and teacher evaluations.

Lance Lochner – RENEWED Tier 2 CRC in Human Capital and Productivity

As the renewed Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Human Capital and Productivity, Lance Lochner’s research provides the Canadian government with information to help better design policies to improve youth skills. On matters relating to skill formation, income inequality and changes in social status over generations, Lochner explores how his research can guide education and labour market policies. For example, by developing and testing economic theories on borrowing and repayment incentives for Canadian students, one goal is to better understand patterns of postsecondary enrolment to completion. As a Tier 2 Chairholder, Lochner was awarded $100,000 annually for five years and has been recognized as an exceptional and emerging researcher in his field.

George Ayittey (M.A. Economics 1970) Credits Western

George Ayittey (M.A. Economics, 1970) has dedicated his life to saving Africa. As president of the Free Africa Foundation, established in 1993 and based in Washington, D.C., Ayittey argues that although aid to Africa is sincere, proceeds are pointless until the continent rids itself of violent dictatorships. In 2008, Foreign Policy magazine named Ayittey one of the world’s 'Top 100 Public Intellectuals' and to this day, he credits Western for helping him both find his voice and making the necessary connections to spark his cause.

Further information, including an excerpt from his latest book, Defeating Dictators: Fighting Tyranny in Africa and Around the World, can be found in the Winter 2012 issue of Western Alumni News.

University Students' Council - Teaching Honour Roll Certificate 2010-2011

Congratulations to Chris Robinson on receiving a USC Teaching Honour Roll Certificate for the 2010-2011 academic year. This award is given to instructors who receive an accumulated average of 6.3 or higher out of 7 on the first 14 questions of the Western Senate-mandated course and teacher evaluations. Robinson was also elected Undergraduate Professor of the Year for 2010-2011.

Todd Stinebrickner: Research in The Globe and Mail

A December 25, 2011 article in The Globe and Mail entitled "Universities tossing at-risk undergrads an academic lifebuoy," on post-secondary drop-outs, draws on Todd Stinebrickner’s continued research on why undergraduate students choose to leave university. Stinebrickner states, "There is a fairly big gap between university and high school, and students have to be prepared to deal with that. And when you perform poorly that also impacts how much you like your university and how much stress you're dealing with. When you look at all those factors together, it's clear how bad grades can derail their university education."

Lance Lochner – Research on Early Childhood Education and Crime

Lance Lochner, Director of the CIBC Centre for Human Capital and Productivity, and author of the Centre’s newly released Policy Brief 3 entitled "The Impacts of Education on Crime, Health and Mortality, and Civic Participation" reveals his research on ways in which education can reduce crime, lower mortality rates, and improve health. Lochner claims in a Western News article, that policies increasing high school completion rates, improving school quality and early childhood learning opportunities, "especially in disadvantaged communities," are likely to be more successful in reducing crime than policies aimed at increasing college and university attendance.

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