History

The department of economics and finance is one of five academic units in the Jennings A. Jones College of Business. The department currently consists of 25 tenured or tenure-track faculty members (19 currently have tenure), with four additional open tenure-track positions currently filled with temporary faculty members. The department also has various temporary and adjunct members and instructors, some of whom are Ph.D. students. Economics and Finance faculty are holders of two endowed chairs, the Tommy Martin Chair of Insurance and the Jack Weatherford Chair of Finance. Further, the director of the Jones College Business and Economics Research Center (BERC) is a member of the economics faculty.

The economics program at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) began as a component of the Social Sciences Department and became a department, with a major degree, when the School of Business and Industry was organized in the fall of 1964. Finance was moved from another department in 1978. The M.A. economics program was established in the mid-1960s, and a Doctor of Arts (D.A.) was approved in 1980. Approximately 30 graduates earned the D.A. prior to its redesign to a Ph.D. in 2003. The first Ph.D. was awarded in August, 2003.

The department currently offers the following majors and degree programs:

The department is supported by a dedicated faculty with strong academic credentials and relevant business and professional experience outside the academic arena. For example, our faculty have published in top journals such as the Economic Journal, European Economic Review, Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, and Journal of Labor Economics, and they have experience that includes being president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, a consultant for the World Bank, and a federal labor arbitrator.

Department Chairs