Search Results
Speech
The U.S., Mexican, and border economies
Remarks before a Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Community Luncheon, Laredo, Texas, September 10, 2007. ; "It is fair to say that I am encouraged by what I have heard against a background of constant negative speculation and the occasional discordant note, such as last week's employment numbers. Our economy appears to be weathering the storm thus far. The future path of that storm and the appropriate policy course, however, are still to be determined."
Working Paper
Insuring college failure risk
Participants in student loan programs must repay loans in full regardless of whether they complete college. But many students who take out a loan do not earn a degree (the dropout rate among college students is between 33 to 50 percent). The authors examine whether insurance against college-failure risk can be offered, taking into account moral hazard and adverse selection. To do so, they developed a model that accounts for college enrollment, dropout, and completion rates among new high school graduates in the US and use that model to study the feasibility and optimality of offering ...
Speech
Economic challenges
"While it seems pretty clear that economic momentum is slowing, the jury is out on whether lesser momentum will be sufficient to translate into relief on the price front over the intermediate to longer term. In East Texas parlance, 'It might could but it mightn't'; it most definitely has not thus far." ; Remarks before the Greater Houston Partnership, Houston, Texas, September 4, 2008.
Working Paper
Insuring student loans against the risk of college failure
Participants in student loan programs must repay loans in full regardless of whether they complete college. But many students who take out a loan do not earn a degree (the dropout rate among college students is between 33 to 50 percent). The authors examine whether insurance against college-failure risk can be offered, taking into account moral hazard and adverse selection. To do so, they develop a model that accounts for college enrollment, dropout, and completion rates among new high school graduates in the US and use that model to study the feasibility and optimality of offering insurance ...
Journal Article
Do colleges and universities have a role in local and regional economic development?
It has become almost hackneyed to suggest that we now live in a knowledgebased economy. Firms prosper and die based on their ability to add intellectual value to their products and services. Even in mature industries, such as manufacturing, the application of knowledge to enhance production techniques and increase productivity has been fundamental to competitive success. With the pace of economic change accelerating, economic development strategies that emphasize having the best human capital available to adapt to change continue to gain favor. Noted economist Edward Glaesser has demonstrated ...
Speech
Digits and widgets (with reference to a wise mother, the Golden Book Encyclopedia, Winston Churchill and Hunter Lawrence)
"In the world of "superfine processes" of the Knowledge Age, digits are the new widgets. The brain is to the Knowledge Age and the mastery of digits what the engine was to the Manufacturing Age and the management of widgets. Education is the steam and the oil and the gas that propel that engine. The speed at which we move our economy forward from this point onward will depend on how well we educate our children." ; Remarks before the Austin Chamber of Commerce's 4th Annual State of Education in Austin Conference; Austin, Texas; December 8, 2009.
Speech
Higher education in Texas
Remarks to the Rotary Club of Dallas, Dallas, Texas, June 13, 2007. ; "Economists may quibble about widgets and whatnot, but they are united on this: Education pays off. There's an irrefutable positive link between education and income. We see it across countries, between individuals, in America's progress over time and when comparing states."
Newsletter
Can higher education foster economic growth?—a conference summary
While higher education is being asked to perform more roles in the local economy, specific pathways for influencing local and regional economic transformation are still being identified. On October 30, 2006, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and the Midwest Higher Education Compact held a conference on higher education and economic growth.
Speech
The southern states in a globalized economy
Remarks before the Southern Governors' Association 73rd Annual Meeting, Biloxi, Mississippi, August 25, 2007. ; "There is no great secret about how to lay the groundwork for Southern states' success in harvesting and harnessing--in mastering--globalization. The key to adapting to and profiting from globalization lies in education."
Working Paper
A new social compact: how university engagement can fuel innovation
Richard K. Lester feels that colleges and universities, because they are immobile, can replace local institutions whose leadership has been eroded by globalization. However, university attempts to improve the regional economy must be well-planned. North Dakota clearly illustrates benefits of a strategic approach to university and college interaction with the economy. This paper examines the degree to which their Higher Education Roundtable fits into the specific model of engagement proposed by Lester. Much of the specificity of the North Dakota plan came in the implementation, which has been ...