DIVERSEcon

Outstanding teachers are those who are willing to take on leadership roles that can be used to improve the learning environment not just in the classroom but also at the university level or even for the discipline. Over the last several years, recognition of the lack of diversity and issues related to discrimination and bias have been raised to the highest levels of the economics profession, culminating this past spring with the drafting of a new code of conduct that was adopted by the American Economic Association (AEA) in 2018 and was the subject of several sessions at the annual meetings. In 2018, I was awarded a grant from the Northeastern University Office of Diversity and Inclusion to form a new student group DIVERSEcon aimed at addressing issues of diversity that affect women, racial/ethnic minorities, and LGBTQ individuals within the economics profession.

This new group has focused on raising awareness by inviting diverse speakers to campus, providing mentoring and role models for current students, and developing practical recommendations that can be implemented to increase diversity and inclusion with our department. By encouraging under-represented groups to enter the discipline and persist in their studies, the economics department at Northeastern University has the potential to be a leader within the broader profession on issues of diversity and ensure that we are attracting the best minds to the field and expanding intellectual development.

The inaugural lecture took place in December 2018 and featured Dr. Maria Luengo-Prado, a senior economist and policy advisor in the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Dr. Luengo-Prado discussed her career as both an academic and government economist. The seminar was followed by a town-hall style discussion led by Dr. Modestino about ways to boost diversity within the field of economics as well as a reception for students and faculty.