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Brandeis University
Department of Economics
Celebrating the Class of 2020
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A photograph of a Professor Jean-Paul L'Huillier sitting down and looking at the camera. The professor is sitting in the Bloomberg Lab at the International Business School at a desk in front of desktop computers.
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A photograph of two students studying and smiling in Goldfarb 1.
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A photograph of the 2019-2020 Economics Department, all wearing blue and white, smiling and posing for the camera.
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A photograph of the "Life After Brandeis" event held in the World Court at the International Business School.
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A photograph of two students. One is wearing a cap and the other is wearing a gown and they are standing outside on Brandeis Campus.
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A photograph of a student smiling and sitting on a rock in front of Sachar International Center at the International Business School. There are dozens of country flags hanging in the background.
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A photograph of a student and Professor Scott Redenius smiling for the camera. Both have plates of food in their hands after a "Meet the Majors" event in the World Court at the International Business School.
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A photograph of Professor Michael Coiner giving a speech at his retirement celebration in April, 2019 in the World Court at the International Business School. There are blue and white balloons and party-goers in the room.
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A photograph of Economics Chair Professor Elizabeth Brainerd, Professor George Hall, and Professor Gary Jefferson smiling for the camera in the Chair's office.
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A photograph of four students, all holding hands, sitting with their legs crossed on the "Light of Reason" installation. They are dressed in semi-formal clothes and they are smiling.
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A photograph of three students at a party smiling for the camera in front of a window.
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A photograph of a large group of students at the front of a classroom. They are all wearing red and dark colors.
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A photograph of four students embracing in front of golden balloons that say "2020" celebrating New Year's Eve.
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A selfie of two students at a soccer event. Both students are smiling for the camera and the field is visible behind them.
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A photograph of a student standing in front of a lake. There is sunshine on her face and she is smiling.
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A photograph of a student in a canoe on a body of water. The photograph is taken from behind and the student is wearing a bright orange life vest.
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A photograph of a Professor Jean-Paul L'Huillier sitting down and looking at the camera. The professor is sitting in the Bloomberg Lab at the International Business School at a desk in front of desktop computers.
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A photograph of two students studying and smiling in Goldfarb 1.
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A photograph of the 2019-2020 Economics Department, all wearing blue and white, smiling and posing for the camera.
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A silly photograph of a large group of students. One is sitting in the center looking uncomfortable while the rest are smiling and posing for the camera.
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A photograph of the "Life After Brandeis" event held in the World Court at the International Business School.
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A photograph of two students. One is wearing a cap and the other is wearing a gown and they are standing outside on Brandeis Campus.
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A photograph of Professor Michael Coiner smiling in front of a neutral background.
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A photograph of a smiling student in front of a large tree in a tropical location.
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A photograph of two students in the same sweatshirt smiling and pointing at each other.
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A photograph of four students in front of a brightly-colored abstract mural.
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A photograph of a student wearing a headset sitting inside the cockpit of a plane or helicopter.
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A photograph of Professor Ben Shiller lecturing in his classroom and pointing at the board.
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A photograph of two students hugging on the top of a mountain. They are standing in front of a picturesque view.
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A photograph of a student's study space and he is adjusting his glasses. There are white boards, headphones, books, and a laptop on the table.
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A photograph of two students smiling for the camera in front of a piece of art.
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A photograph of two students standing outside of the Brandeis Security office. They are wearing matching Orientation t-shirts and are both holding large orange flags.
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A photograph of a student smiling and sitting on a rock in front of Sachar International Center at the International Business School. There are dozens of country flags hanging in the background.
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A photograph of a student and Professor Scott Redenius smiling for the camera. Both have plates of food in their hands after a "Meet the Majors" event in the World Court at the International Business School.
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A photograph of a student standing outside on Brandeis campus.
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A photograph of a student sitting on the "Brandeis University" sign. There are red and yellow tulips in the foreground.
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A photograph of two students smiling outside.
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A photograph of two students smiling and studying in the library.
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A photograph of Professor Michael Coiner giving a speech at his retirement celebration in April, 2019 in the World Court at the International Business School. There are blue and white balloons and party-goers in the room.
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A photograph of Economics Chair Professor Elizabeth Brainerd, Professor George Hall, and Professor Gary Jefferson smiling for the camera in the Chair's office.
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A photograph of two students in formal clothes, smiling and posing for the camera in front of a tapestry.
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A photograph of four students, all holding hands, sitting with their legs crossed on the "Light of Reason" installation. They are dressed in semi-formal clothes and they are smiling.
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A dark blue slide with white text. The text reads:
Welcome Graduates, Families, and Friends
Department of Economics Senior Celebration
Thursday May 28th, 2020
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A blue slide with a background photograph of the Louis D. Brandeis Statue and white text. The text on the slide reads:
Brandeis University
Elizabeth Brainerd
Susan and Barton Winokur Professor in Economics and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies
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Program of Events
Opening Remarks
Prof. Elizabeth Brainerd, Economics Chair
Keynote Speaker
Prof. John Ballantine Jr.
Presentation of Thesis Honors
Prof. Gary Jefferson
Presentation of Department Prizes & Awards
Prof. Scott Redenius
– Presentation of Graduates–
Economics Department Faculty Send-Off
Closing Remarks
Prof. Elizabeth Brainerd, Economics Chair
Professor Elizabeth Brainerd appears on screen in front of The Samuel Lemberg Academic Center.
Elizabeth Brainard:
Hello, everyone. Welcome. I'm Betsy Brainerd, the chair of the Department of Economics, and on behalf of our faculty, it is my pleasure to welcome you all to the 2020 Department of Economics celebration in honor of our graduating seniors. While next spring, we'll gather to celebrate the Brandeis class of 2020 as a whole, now we're here to celebrate the individual achievements of the 157 seniors graduating this May as majors in economics.
To our graduates' family and friends, we know that many of you are tuning in from around the globe to be here in support of our graduates. We are delighted that you are here to share in this celebration. To the parents of the graduates, we thank you for the honor of being entrusted with teaching your daughters and sons. It is indeed a great privilege to get to know the next generation of our country's, and indeed our world's leadership. And finally to the graduates, to the class of 2020, congratulations. We are very proud of each and every one of you.
Let me begin by giving you an overview of our proceedings today. We'll start with our distinguished faculty speaker, Professor John Ballantine, giving remarks to our graduates. That will be followed by the presentation of senior honors theses by Professor Gary Jefferson. Next up, Professor Scott Redenius will present the economics department prizes and awards for 2020. We'll present the names of our graduates in a virtual slideshow, and then we'll wrap up with greetings to our students from individual faculty members. After the ceremony, we invite students and families to stop by the virtual chat rooms of individual faculty members to say hello.
Let me say a few words about the economics major at Brandeis. As many of you know, economics continues to be the largest major at the university, and there's a common perception that economics is such a popular major because our graduates typically do well on the job market, and there's good reason for this perception. The typical economics major earns about 1/3 more over her lifetime than her average peer. You'll be pleased to hear that this gap grows even larger during recessions. Employers value the quantitative and analytical skills you've all worked so hard to acquire during your time at Brandeis.
You know, but I believe that the popularity of the economics major is due to something more than just financial considerations. It's really a reflection on the discipline itself. Economics provides an intellectual perspective and know-how to analyze a broad range of social issues in a rigorous way. So economics is empowering for anyone who wants to engage in public service, or simply to understand more deeply than most the origins and consequences of economic events.
This has never been more apparent than now, as the tools you've learned over the past four years are critical for understanding the economic consequences of the current crisis, its uneven distributional effects, and how to design policies to best mitigate these effects. On a more personal level, as you all know, learning economics literally changes your life. After taking your first introductory economics class, you can't help but look at life differently. Economics helps to frame the choices we as individuals make every day. Economics aids in making decisions about spending and saving, and more broadly about things like education, children, marriage, divorce, career, retirement, and even things like exercise and diet.
At Brandeis, the study of economics offers four years of challenging intellectual engagement, but the wish of our faculty is that this is but the foundation for you, our students, in your continued quest to deepen and broaden your understanding of the economic principles and events that will shape your own lives and those of the society for which we share responsibility. So make the most of what you've learned, use it to navigate through these difficult times and beyond, and as your understanding of the world grows, please come back and share it with the next generation of economics students. You're an economics student for four years, but you're a member of Brandeis and the economics department for life.
Now it's my pleasure to introduce our faculty speaker for today, Professor John Ballantine. Many of you know Professor Ballantine from ECON 171, his popular course in financial economics. Professor Ballantine is a senior lecturer in the Brandeis International Business School. He's a specialist in finance and financial economics, corporate finance, and the economics of energy and climate change. He's a very popular professor whose students universally praise for his dedication to teaching and to his students' learning and well-being.
You know, when I was thinking about which faculty member to ask to take on this important task of being our speaker for today, John Ballantine came immediately to mind, and you might be wondering why, and the reason is because, fundamentally, Professor Ballantine is an optimist. He can find the silver lining in any cloud and provide perspective on the lessons that we learn from adversity. I have always admired his positive perspective, especially for an economist, and I think you'll agree with me that he is the right choice for this moment. So please join me in welcoming Professor John Ballantine.
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A dark blue slide with white text and a photograph of the Louis D. Brandeis Statue in the background. The text on the slide reads:
Brandeis University
John W. Ballantine Jr.
Senior Lecturer in the Brandeis International Business School
Professor John Ballantine appears in the top right corner of the screen, in front of a large bookshelf. There is a slide show taking up the majority of the rest of the screen.
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A dark blue slide with white and black text, headed by the Brandeis University official seal. The text on the slide reads:
Brandeis University
Celebrating the Class of 2020
Economics Mini-Celebration
Professor John W. Ballantine Jr.
May 28, 2020
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
Thank you for inviting me to our first online celebration. 49 years ago, I was in your shoes in very different circumstances. So what does graduation with an economics degree mean in 2020? What lessons have I learned since my graduation in 1971 with an English degree, and later with a PhD in economics?
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Our context — growing up — college graduates
Post World War IIMarshall Plan / Cold War
Cuban Missile Crisis 1962
1960s Assassinations
Vietnam War protests
Post 9 / 11
Wars: Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria …
Financial Crisis 2008 / 2009
Slow Recovery and Austerity
Covid 19 Recession & Social Distancing
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
First, our context and experiences matter. They help form us. Each of us is different. Each of us has unique experiences. However, we all share common markers. For me, a post-war baby boomer born to academic and civically engaged parents, one of my first memories of post-cold world war period was the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 as I crouched under my desk preparing for something bad. I thought, "We are clearly a target of Soviet missiles since scientists in Princeton, New Jersey, helped develop the atomic bomb." Three years earlier, Castro was feted as a hero in Princeton and New York City. The wheel of fortune turned on him.
The 1960s was a time of assassinations: JFK, his brother RFK, Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, and civil right marches and riots across the USA. Vietnam War resulted in too many killed and a terrible division across the country.
Of course, the music. I saw the Beatles in 1964 in Shea Stadium, heard the Stones in the Boston Garden in 1970, maybe I sat with Bob Dylan and Joan Baez in Club 47 at Cambridge, and I did not go to Woodstock. The 1960s were a tumultuous time where I, too, had pass/fail semesters. Your context is equally tumultuous.
You are the 9/11 generation, Generation Z, waking up to the financial crisis of 2008 and 09 and cascading CDO defaults, today's COVID-19 pandemic that is barely contained, a fragmenting globalized world with disrupted supply chains and fraying relationships, a slammed economy and worldwide recessions. Where is your world going? What are you going to do after you graduate? Pictures tell some of the story.
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A white slide with four photographs on the right side. The photographs are all in black and white. The top left photograph is of a rally, the top right photograph is of different politicians who were famous in the 1960s, the bottom left photograph is of different public figures who were assassinated, and the photograph on the bottom right is of an anti-war rally. The text on the slide reads:
USSR, Asia, and Europe 1947
to
USA 1971
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
Here's the 1950s and 60s for me, and your post-9/11 generation.
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The World, 2001-2020
… next year and beyond
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FIVE Lessons: yes, this is about economics… and
Leave with Questions, hard questions
Learn frameworks and listen to stories
Value our liberal arts education — intellectual discourse
Step out of our comfort zone — walk in the world
Connect to others — empathy helps us grow
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
I draw five lessons from my 71 years: Leave and graduate with tough questions that are hard to answer. They stay with you as you age. Hold the frameworks and stories as guides for turning over the hard-to-answer questions. Value your liberal arts education where you learned that a life examined is worth living. Step out of your comfort zone. Walk in the world, touch the data, and hear the stories. Be a little lost. Finally and most important, connect and empathize what is our relationships that let us grow.
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A white slide. On the right is a photograph of the cover of the the book The Great Crash 1929 by John Kenneth Galbraith. Below that are a few graphs. On the left there is a gray box with white text. The text reads:
1. Graduate with hard to answer questions
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
So here are some of the questions that I left with. My father gave me "The Great Crash 1929" so I could learn about his experiences. This was my first economics lecture to my seventh-grade class just after the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. I remember standing in front of the class describing the circle of our economy, how it broke, leading to a collapse, investment, employment, and consumption, explaining how Say's law did not necessarily hold, savings did not equal investment, and talking and explaining why squeezing the money supply and higher interest rates did not stimulate growth.
Why depressions? Why so much unemployment, and what should governments do?
Poverty and inequality hit me when I visited the slums of New York City and read of the starvation in India as wheat surpluses piled up near U.S. grain elevators. I wrote my grandfather, a grain merchant, about the failure of grain markets and how I thought we could fix them. I was 14.
I saw the rising tide of President Kennedy and the tax cut that did not lift all boat, and that President Johnson's 1964 war on poverty was not enough. Why are the poor still with us?
The war in Vietnam tore my generation apart. Our politics was broken. Later, the OPEC embargo and the Middle East wars revealed a world I did not know. The collapse of the Soviet Union and the Berlin Wall was unimaginable in 1971. What leaders do we need? What type of political economy works?
I graduated in 1971 with the Brandeis social justice mission ringing in my ears. Why, why, why?
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What are YOUR Questions?
What Keeps you up at night?
What do you want to fix?
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
What are your questions? What keeps you up at night? What do you want to fix?
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2. Frameworks & Stories
Adam Smith, Professor of moral philosophy
more than invisible hand
John M. Keynes,
Investment, disequalibrium and government finance
Milton Friedman, U of Chicago
power of markets
positive / normative
monetary economics
Today:
rational expectation, game theory, agents … complexity …empirical models
Samuelson, Leontief, Solow, Modigliani … MIT
Modern France, U of Chicago
Renaissance
Dante
Boccaccio
Milton
Philosophy
Plato, Aristotle, Virgil
Kant, Heidigger
Marx, Lenin
Sartre, De Beauvoir, Camus …
Wittgenstein, Russell …
Literature
Shakespeare, Cervantes, Tolstoy, Flaubert
Marquez, Symborska, TS Eliot, Joyce, Becket
Tony Morrison, James Baldwin
Robert Penn Warren, Mailer, McCarthy
McCullers, Jane Smiley, Mary Oliver…
Arts
Giotto, Impressionists to Pollack
Jean Renoir, Truffaut, Godard, Godfather, 2001, Star Wars.
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
What will you carry with you as you graduate? Lots of books, stories, movies, paintings, poems, so on. Here are some of mine.
Particularly focused on the economics: clearly Adam Smith, the professor of moral philosophy, and his Enlightenment colleagues. Hume, Locke and Hobbes were preoccupied with the true nature of people, how we are connected, how we trucked and bartered, and maybe through the magic of the invisible hand, found a common purpose and greater good.
Of course, John Maynard Keynes saw that the world of the 1930s did not necessarily equilibrate at full employment. The classical economics that he learned from Marshall was not working. Instead, government had a significant role to play, and debt too. Then Milton Friedman and his colleagues at the University of Chicago argued convincingly about the power of markets and how capitalism and freedom and positive economics was a countervailing thesis to the Keynesian postulates of Samuelson and his compatriots at MIT and Harvard. You have pored over many of these texts and articles with more quantitative rigor and data. Our readings of great social scientists are full of passionate debates about the big questions.
What stories did you learn here? What do we carry?
For me, the emergence from the Dark Ages and the plagues to the humanism of the Renaissance and challenges of the Industrial Revolution was riveting. Many spoke to me: Dante, Milton, Shakespeare, Cervantes, Szymborska, Tolstoy, Toni Morrison, and the philosophers that I did not understand.
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A black slide with white text. In the background, there is a photograph of Earth from space. The text on the slide reads:
What are YOUR Frameworks and Stories
How do you see the world?
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
What are your frameworks and stories? How do you see the world? What are you carrying with you as you graduate from Brandeis?
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A light blue slide with black text. In the center of the slide there is the cover of a book, Anti-Intellectualism in American Life by Richard Hofstadter. The text on the slide reads:
3. Liberal Arts Education, Brandeis Social Justice Mission
Socratic method
Ask questions, explore, and debate
Look at the facts
Scientific Revolutions (Kuhn)
Ptolemaic system
Copernicus & Galileo
excommunicated Church
Richard Hofstadter, progressive historian, an intellectual:
piety / passion
playfulness
disinterest
And today?
Polarized discourse
Policy consensus
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
The value of our liberal arts education is hopefully very central to your sense of self.
Richard Hofstadter's Pulitzer-Prize-winning books resonated with me, particularly "Anti-Intellectualism in American Life." He was partly responding to the McCarthy era in the U.S. However, his progressive analysis still is relevant today. He makes a distinction between intelligence, test-taking, problem-solving, and all the As that we are seeking, and intellect, or as Socrates noted, the examined life. Becoming an intellectual is what you learned here: piety and playfulness, a passion for ideas, a questioning playful testing of hypotheses and views of the world. Or to quote, "An intellectual has a quality of disinterested, disinterested intelligence, generalizing power, respeculation, fresh observation, creative novelty, and radical criticism." Ideas can shake world perspectives.
In "The Structure of Scientific Revolutions," Thomas Kuhn tells how Copernicus and Galileo saw the Earth and Sun in a totally different way, throwing out Ptolemaic circles, and eventually ushering in Isaac Newton and our math. Of course, Galileo was excommunicated from the church for 350 years.
This is what our liberal arts education and economics training is all about: passion, piety, and playfulness.
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4. Step out of your comfort zone
People, data, and feelings
Prisons in Arkansas, NYC, Texas
Ex-addicts in Harlem 1970s
Kentucky, Ashland Oil 1974-75 OPEC embargo
Beyond privilege
Journeys into world
A little lost
A little uncomfortable
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
As you graduate, it is important to step out of your comfort zone. It's the crucial step to go out and see the world. Become a little lost, not like Dante descending into the nine circles of hell with Virgil as his guide. However, leave the comforts of Brandeis, walk into howling winds and hot noonday sun.
For me, this meant working in the prisons of New Jersey, Arkansas and Texas, where I saw white, black, and Latino locked up. I heard about their journeys. Walking the back alleys of Harlem with ex-addicts struggling to pay the rent, I saw the normal curve of poverty. Some make it; others do not. Working for Ashland Oil in Eastern Kentucky during the OPEC embargo and realizing that some saw me as a Boston-educated liberal, and they'd still talk to me.
We can communicate these experiences. Experiences stay with me. Be a little uncomfortable as you graduate Brandeis and walk into the world. The most important lesson is to connect and empathize.
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5. Connect with empathy … and
Dark Ages & Renaissance
Dante Wandering through circles of hell … with Virgil & Beatrice
Enlightenment & Free Trade
Adam Smith, Trucking and bartering
Challenges to mercantilism
Civil War & Restoration
John Milton Regicide, Charles I
The Puritan Revolution
Adam and Eve exiting the Garden of Eden to us here
Globalization & Institutions
Trade, capital flows, int'l markets,
Our friendships, networks and connections
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
Feel the fellowship with each other and our earth and what is around us.
Adam Smith wrote about this in "Theory of Moral Sentiments" and worked his whole life to lay out a system of social justice. Dante, with Virgil by his side, looked for Beatrice and justice as they journeyed down. And today, our globalized world is rediscovering and reconnecting to build a better, more caring world, and so many books, songs, show that the power of our heart, your friendships, are why we are here.
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A light blue slide with black text. In the center there is a piece of art featuring Jalal al-Din Rumi. The text on the slide reads:
What's Love Got to Do With It? Ike & Tina Turner, 1984
All You Need is Love, The Beatles, 1967
Jalal al-Din Rumi, Persia 1207-1273
Someone who does not run toward the allure of love
walks a road where nothing lives.
Your heart knows the way.
Run in that direction.
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
Let me add a little lightness from the 1960s. Ike and Tina Turner talked, sang, "What's love got to do with it?" Everything. And of course, the Beatles sang in Sergeant Pepper's, "All you need is love," in 1967. Rumi knew this well before them, that we should be following our heart and going in the direction that it points us. Run towards the allure of love. So that's the message, a positive message I leave with you.
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My FIVE Lessons
Economics is a social science
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
These are the lessons that I've learned over the past 71 years. You will learn different lessons, and hopefully they will guide you towards making a better and more just world.
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A white slide with black text. In the center there is a drawing of graduation caps floating in the sky. The text on the slide reads:
Congratulations
John W. Ballantine Jr. :
Finally, congratulations and good luck, and it's been wonderful to get to know all of you. Congratulations!
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A blue slide with white text. In the background there is a photograph of a statue of Louis D. Brandeis. The text on the slide reads:
Brandeis University
Elizabeth Brainerd
Susan and Barton Winokur Professor in Economics and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies
Professor Elizabeth Brainerd appears on screen in front of the Samuel Lemberg Academic Center.
Elizabeth Brainerd:
Thank you, Professor Ballantine, for those inspiring words.
Before going to the honors and prizes we award each year for outstanding work in the field of economics, I want to recognize the work of the large number of graduating seniors who've made ongoing contributions to the economics department through their efforts as teaching assistants, research assistants, office workers, and also our undergraduate departmental representatives. On behalf of the economics department's faculty and students, many thanks for your efforts. You have greatly enhanced our ability to provide a top-quality education to our students.
And now I'd like to introduce Professor Gary Jefferson, who will recognize our senior honors thesis writers. Professor Jefferson very ably directed our senior honors thesis program this year, and I thank him for his work. Welcome, Professor Jefferson.
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A dark blue slide with white text. In the background there is a photograph of a statue of Louis D. Brandeis. The text on the slide reads:
Brandeis University
Gary H. Jefferson
Carl Marks Professor of International Trade and Finance
Professor Gary Jefferson appears on screen in front of a large bookcase.
Gary Jefferson:
Hi, this is Gary Jefferson. As the faculty coordinator of the department's senior thesis program, it is my pleasure to encounter some of the most talented students in the department. These are students who in their senior year choose to substitute two semesters of intense, self-motivated research for two regular courses. While each student is assigned a faculty advisor and two faculty readers, the research topics are selected by the students themselves. The research, its quality, its pace, its outcome, is largely driven by the student. We the faculty, a committee of three, primarily serve as consultants.
At the end of the academic year, each research project culminates in a defense before the thesis committee. The committee decides whether the thesis and the effort put into it is worthy of an honors designation or not. If it is, as in the case of those who this year earned honors recognition, the thesis committee meets with the full economics faculty to review the quality of the research and the student's overall performance. Each student is awarded honors, high honors, or highest honors.
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Presentation of Thesis Honors
Chris De Mena
High Honors
Disasters, Duration and Migration: A Case Study on Centralia and Three Mile Island
Aseem Kumar
High Honors
The Impact of U.S. Government Grants on Innovation in China
Serra Pelin
Highest Honors
On the Effectiveness of Sterilized Foreign Exchange Intervention Policy: A Study of Economies with Imperfect Financial Markets
Maxwell Snider
High Honors
Economic Interdependence and Armed Conflict: An analysis of Historical Trends from 1874 to 2000
Samantha Shi
Honors
Effect of Uncertainty of Brexit on Export and Import of the UK with the EU
Matthew Zieff
Honors
A Game Theoretical Analysis of Restricted Free Agency in the NBA
Gary Jefferson:
Accordingly, as you see on the screen, six students and their individual research topics earning special recognition this year. They are Chris De Mena, high honors; Aseem Kumar, high honors; Serra Pelin, highest honor;, Maxwell Snider, high honors; Samantha Shi, honors; Matthews Zieff, honors. Congratulations to our six senior thesis alumni. Thank you.
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A blue slide with white text. In the background there is a photograph of a statue of Louis D. Brandeis. The text on the slide reads:
Brandeis University
Elizabeth Brainerd
Susan and Barton Winokur Professor in Economics and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies
Professor Elizabeth Brainerd appears on screen in front of the Samuel Lemberg Academic Center.
Elizabeth Brainerd:
Thank you, Professor Jefferson, and congratulations to our honors thesis writers. And now to present our awards for outstanding scholarship in the field of economics, I call on one of our beloved professors at Brandeis, Professor Scott Redenius.
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Brandeis University
Scott Redenius
Associate Professor in Economics
Professor Scott Redenius appears on screen in front of a white wall.
Scott Redenius:
Welcome. It is always difficult to choose the recipients of the economics department prizes because we are fortunate to have many exceptional students in our major. This year was especially difficult because there are so many deserving students. The students we recognize compiled extremely impressive academic records. It is a pleasure to recognize the hard work, dedication, and intellectual ability that these students demonstrated throughout their work in the economics major at Brandeis. Let's turn to the awards. The economics department awards three prizes to graduating seniors each year.
Our first prize is the Morris and Anna Feldberg Prize in Economics. This prize is awarded to an outstanding student in economics, planning on graduate study in the field. This year's recipient is Emma Farrell. Emma is an economics and philosophy double major with a minor in politics. She will be working at Bates White after graduation.
Our next prize is the Sidney S. Cohen Award in Economics, which is awarded for outstanding work in the field of economics. This year's recipient is Yixiao He. Yixiao is an economics and mathematics double major. He was a TA for the global economy and the microeconomic theory classes. He plans to go on to a graduate finance program in the fall.
Our last prize, the Carol Ann Steinfeld Memorial Prize in Economics is awarded to an outstanding student in economics who plans to attend graduate school. This year's recipient is Anat Kleiman. Anat is an economics and computer science double major. I was lucky to have all three of our prize recipients in class. Congratulations to all of you.
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Departmental Awards
Morris and Anna Feldberg Prize in Economics
Emma Farrell
Sidney S. Cohen Award in Economics
Yixiao He
Carol Ann Steinfeld Memorial Prize in Economics
Anat Kleinman
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Now Presenting the Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Richard Philip Albert
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, Business
Prizes: Suderow Family Prize for Excellence in Business
Adrienne Natalie Aponto
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Film, Television & Interactive Media
Minor: Business
Samuel Benjamin Aronson
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics, Business
Minor: Architectural Studies
Connor Vincent Babcock
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
in Economics
Minors: Business, Hispanic Studies
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Samantha Barrett
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics, Politics
Minor: Legal Studies
Nina Anne Bart
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Health: Science, Society & Policy
Emma C. Bartlett
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Environmental Studies
Minors: Hispanic Studies
Prizes: Athletic Directors Award
Carlos Guillermo Caballero Ferreira
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, International & Global Studies with highest honors
Prizes: The Ellen Lasher Kaplan '64 and Robert S. Kaplan Prize
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Jiyin Chen
Bachelor of Science
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Applied Mathematics
Wei-Ting Chen
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Business
Xi Chen
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, Mathematics
Minor: Hispanic Studies
Zeping Chen
Bachelor of Science
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Applied Mathematics
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Chingman Cheung
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Ek Kheng Chung
Bachelor of Science
Majors in: Economics; Computer Science
Minor: Business
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Noah Jeffery Cohen
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minor: Business
Kevin Matsumura Costa
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics, English, Creative Writing
Minor: Philosophy
Prizes: Bernard H. Herman '08 Prize in Creative Writing
Christopher Matthew de Mena
Bachelor of Arts
Summa Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics with high honors, History
Martin Joseph DeLuca
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
in Economics
Minor: Mathematics
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Caini Deng
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics, Psychology
Minor: Health: Science, Society & Social Policy
Fanyi Dong
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, Business
Matthew Richard Ekins
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, Computer Science
Jingwen Fang
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics, Mathematics
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Emma Joan Farrell
Bachelor of Arts
Summa Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, Philosophy with highest honors
Minor: Politics
Prizes: Philosophy Prize; Morris & Anna Feldberg Prize in Economics
Alexus Milan Faunteroy
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; African & African-American Studies
Minor: Business
Siqi Fei
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, East Asian Studies
Minor: Mathematics
Siyuan Fei
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, East Asian Studies
Minors: Mathematics
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Josue Flores
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Computer Science
Eryao Gao
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Film, Television & Interactive Media
Yaoyao Gao
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minor: Business
Zeyu Geng
Bachelor of Science
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Applied Mathematics
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Mark Benjamin Gimbel
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, East Asian Studies
Minor: Computer Science
Theodore Isaac Golob
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, Business, Computer Science
Matthew A. Gubenko
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minors: Business, Legal Studies
Numan Gun
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Heimei Guo
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics, Computer Science
Xinyi Guo
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Environmental Studies
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Daniel William Haid
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, Business
Ruoyu Han
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, Mathematics
Margaret Hancik
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minors: Computer Science, Psychology
Noa Sophie Hankin
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, Psychology
Minor: Legal Studies
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Yimin He
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; International & Global Studies
Yixiao He
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Mathematics
Prizes: Sidney S. Cohen Award in Economics
Michael Louis Heldman
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, Urban Studies with high honors
Samuel Timothy Ho
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Film, Television & Interactive Media with highest honors
Prizes: Margaret Scheinman Prize in Film Production
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Max Rubin Hoffman
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minor: Business
Leyi Hua
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Mathematics
Carmen Jiamin Huang
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Sahra Ciise Jaamac
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Psychology
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Ben William Jaffe
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minors: Business, Near Eastern & Judaic Studies
Sijie Jiang
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Mathematics
Minor: Business
Fang Jin
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Yilin Jin
Bachelor of Arts
Majors: Economics; Studio Art
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Ashley Maria Kim
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; International & Global Studies
Minor: Legal Studies
Anat Kleiman
Bachelor of Science
Summa Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics, Computer Science with honors
Prizes: Carol Ann Steinfeld Memorial Prize in Economics
Aseem Kumar
Bachelor of Arts
Summa Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics with high honors, Business
Mingrui Li
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minor: Computer Science
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Mingyun Li
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Yiwan Li
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; International & Global Studies
Yixuan Li
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; International & Global Studies
Minor: Philosophy
Yuxi Li
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Mace Adam Lieberman
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Sichen Lin
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; International & Global Studies
Minor: French & Francophone Studies
Zi Jian Lin
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Business
Angela Liu
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Computer Science; East Asian Studies
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Yan Liu
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Minor: Mathematics
Prizes: Award of Academic Achievement in Business
Ruijin Lu
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minor: International & Global Studies
Jiaqin Lu
Bachelor of Science
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Applied Mathematics
Minor: Business
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Yijin Lu
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business; International & Global Studies
Jue Luo
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Psychology
Siwei Lyu
Bachelor of Science
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Applied Mathematics
Meghna Manohar
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
in Economics
Minors: Business, Psychology
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Shuihan Mao
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minor: Mathematics
Madison Ariel Matthews
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
in Economics
Minors: French & Francophone Studies, African & African American Studies
Anigail Hansen McCabe
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
in Economics
Minors: Art History, Classical Studies
Samantha Rose McGuire
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Politics
Minor: History
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Michael Isaiah Melnikas
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Business; Computer Science
Kimberly B. Milando
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Psychology
Minors: Business, Architectural Studies
Matthew Adan Millendorf
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics, Computer Science
Slavin Mu
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Business
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Brian Kabugo Mukasa
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Andrea Guadalupe Murillo
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; History
Minor: Business
David Edward Murphy
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Politics
El Mamoune Naitlho
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minor: Business
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Anh Phuong Nguyen
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Business
Samuel Ninchuck
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; History
Mitchell Ostrovsky
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Serra Deniz Pelin
Bachelor of Arts
Summa Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics with highest honors; Mathematics with honors
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Leah Rae Peretsky
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; International & Global Studies
Minor: Legal Studies
Irving Miguel Perez Santana
Bachelor of Science
Majors in: Economics; Computer Science
Jack Matthew Peters
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; History
Minor: Psychology
Lucas Estevam Plaut
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minors: Business, History
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Gerald Levy Press
Bachelor of Science
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Applied Mathematics; Computer Science
Gabrielle Marilyn Pretekin
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
in Economics
Minors: Psychology
Shawn Ethan Pyatetsky
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Danni Qi
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business; International & Global Studies
Minor: East Asian Studies
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Feipeng Qi
Bachelor of Science
Majors in: Economics; Applied Mathematics
Minor: Computer Science
Yashaspriya Ravish Rathi
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Psychology
Minor: Business
Zheng Ren
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Julia Emily Robinson-Rosendorff
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minors: Women's, Gender, & Sexuality Studies; English
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Stephen Nicholas Roselli
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; International & Global Studies; Politics
Prudence Jillian Ross
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; English with highest honors
Minor: Legal Studies
Prizes: James McCully '86 Award; English Department Award for Outstanding English Essay
Yang Shi
Bachelor of Arts
with honors
in Economics
Minors: Business, Linguistics
Thomas Richard Siemering
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Tamandar Singh
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Computer Science
Minors: Politics, Business
Yvette Veronica Smith
Bachelor of Art in Economics
Minor: Business
Tamar Smuel
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Psychology
Minor: Business
Maxwell Grant Snider
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics with high honors; Philosophy; Politics
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Jiayao Song
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Mathematics
Minor: Computer Science
Rui Song
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minor: Business
Yona Samuel Steinman
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
in Economics
Minors: Business, Mathematics, Near Eastern & Judaic Studies
Jacob Philip Stone
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minors: Politics; Social Justice & Social Policy
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Wenxin Sun
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Mathematics
Yuchen Tan
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
in Economics
Minors: Near Eastern & Judaic Studies; Legal Studies
Prizes: Eli D. and Mollie Goodstein Prize in Hebrew
Ferrell Fernando Taubwidjaja
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; History with honors
Qingyi Tian
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Nancy Thao Nguyen Tran
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; East Asian Studies
Prizes: East Asian Studies' Outstanding Student Award
Precious Chinoso Ufomadu
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; International & Global Studies
Claudia Vacirca
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business; Computer Science
Frank Erik Valentin
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Business
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Pooja Rajesh Wadhwani
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
in Economics
Minors: Business; French & Francophone Studies
Shanxiao Wan
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Haitong Wang
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minors: Business, East Asian Studies
Jiacheng Wang
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors: Economics; Computer Science
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Ruyu Wang
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Mathematics
Minor: Psychology
Sunjie Wang
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Yujie Wang
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; East Asian Studies
Yushan Wang
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Computer Science
Minor: East Asian Studies
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Jacob Maxwell Warren
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Penghe Wei
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Mathematics; Sociology
Benjamin Evan Wolfe
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Amanda Xia
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Minor: Health: Science, Society & Policy
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Mengna Xia
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Jiatong Xie
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Minor: Philosophy
Lingyan Xie
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Computer Science
Junru Xu
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Business
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Yan Xu
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Enpei Jesse Yang
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Computer Science
Minor: Legal Studies
Jocelyn Yeh
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Eric S. Yoon
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; International & Global Studies
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Jiayue Yu
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Minor: Film, Television & Interactive Media
Ye Yuan
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Mathematics
Jennie Y. Yun
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Politics
Minor: Legal Studies
Xinchen Zhai
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
in Economics
Minors: Business, Mathematics, Computer Science
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Hanxi Zhang
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Mathematics
Minor: Legal Studies
Jiayi Zhang
Bachelor of Science
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Computer Science; Mathematics with honors
Shuyang Zhang
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Mathematics
Yiwei Zhang
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minors: Computer Science
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Zhuoya Zhang
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Health: Science, Society & Policy
Zihang Zhang
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Yunan Zhao
Bachelor of Arts
Summa Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Mathematics with honors
Minor: Psychology
Steven Zheng
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Business
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Yuting Zheng
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Business
Minor: Legal Studies
Zhangmin Zheng
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
in Economics
Minor: Business
Yi Zhong
Bachelor of Arts in Economics
Minor: Business
Kevin Weijin Zhou
Bachelor of Science
Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Computer Science
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Lingxi Zhou
Bachelor of Arts
Cum Laude
in Economics
Minors: Business, Computer Science, Mathematics
Mintian Zhou
Bachelor of Arts
Magna Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics; Computer Science; Mathematics
Xiaoyu Zhou
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Business
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Matthew Jacob Zieff
Bachelor of Arts
Summa Cum Laude
Majors in: Economics with honors; Mathematics
Minor: Business
Zachary Alexander Zipkis
Bachelor of Arts
Majors in: Economics; Mathematics
Brandeis University Economics Department Class of 2020
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Congratulations Class of 2020
The Economics Department is very proud to introduce the latest Brandeis University graduates!
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A special word from the Economics Faculty
Masha Akbari appears on the screen in front of a white wall.
Masha Akbari:
Hello, class of 2020. Congratulations on your big achievement. You must be very proud, and I'm sure that this will only be the first of many proud moments and many big achievements in your life. Stay safe.
Geoffrey Clarke appears on screen in front of a white wall, next to a whiteboard. On the whiteboard are the words "Congratulations! class of 2020"
Geoffrey Clarke:
So I am also a member of the class of 2020, so congratulations to us, and I'm gonna celebrate and I hope you do too because there are very few days in our lives we get to celebrate our achievements, and sadly, many more days when we doubt our achievements, and these celebrations help to protect us from the days we doubt. It's a real accomplishment what you've done. You've become a better person since the first day you sat down at Brandeis. It's due to you, it's due to the support of your family, and that's a huge accomplishment, and congratulations. Let's celebrate.
Lynn Browne appears on the screen in front of a white wall
Lynn Browne:
Congratulations, new graduates, and best wishes for the future. You are graduating in difficult times, but while challenges may seem to outnumber opportunities, you are as well equipped as anyone to navigate these challenges successfully. Have confidence in yourself, but never be afraid to ask for help when you need it. There are many resources out there for you to take advantage of, so best wishes.
Benjamin Shiller appears on the screen in front of the Shapiro Campus Center.
Benjamin Shiller:
I know many of you may be anxious about the pandemic, and for good reasons, but I also hope that you are excited for the long-term opportunities that may arise. I imagine the grocery delivery market will be forever changed. Consumers may learn that they prefer curbside pickup even after the pandemic is a distant memory, and with change comes great opportunities. You are the first generation of college graduates to confront these issues and opportunities. Seize the opportunity to shape the new world into something better.
Two small children appear on screen.
[child 1]:
Congratulations!
[child 2]:
Congratulations!
Joshua Goodman appears on screen in front of the Maurice Pollack Fine Arts Teaching Center.
Joshua Goodman:
To all of our seniors who are celebrating today, congratulations! You have earned this proud moment. My hope for you is that the training that your economics coursework and faculty members have given you precisely provides you with the set of tools that are so needed right now to go out there and fix the world. So go out there, make us proud. Congratulations!
George Hall appears on screen in front of a bookcase.
George Hall:
Hi, everyone. My name is George Hall. To our graduates, congratulations! As we all know, you're about to set sail into some pretty choppy waters, but I truly believe that your economics training and your liberal arts education will help pilot you through uncharted waters where there are no clear paths. You can do this. Once again, congratulations. I'm eager to see where you land and what you discover.
Tymon Sloczynski appears on screen in front of the Light of Reason installation.
Tymon Sloczynski:
Dear class of 2020, I'm Tymon Sloczynski from the economics department, and I wanted to congratulate you on all your achievements, and in particular on graduating from Brandeis this spring with a degree in economics. It was great to meet so many of you in my statistics classes and I'm really sorry that we cannot meet again in person this May. I'm looking forward to seeing many of you during the on-campus celebration in the future, and in any case, thank you, and please do stay in touch.
James Ji appears on screen in front of the International Business School.
James Ji:
To our 2020 graduates, congratulations on your achievement. You did it! We're all so proud of you. We are fortunate and blessed to share part of the experience with you. The road ahead is long, but always remember, you're part of the Brandeis family now, and you're always on our minds. No matter where the future journey takes you, I wish you all the best.
Galit Eizman appears on screen in front of the Gossman Sports Center.
Galit Eizman:
Dear class of 2020, my name is Galit Eizman and I'm so proud of you and your accomplishments. You made it! Throw out all the graphs, Excel files, PowerPoints, problem sets and exams. You are now the next generation of economists and businessmen and women. You're our hope and the next leaders. Lead the world to a better future, and don't forget to keep in touch. Good luck.
Nidhiya Menon appears on screen in front of a white wall.
Nidhiya Menon:
Hello, everyone. I wanted to say many congratulations. It was an honor and a pleasure to be your professor. We are proud of your many achievements, and especially about the fortitude and the resilience and strength that you have shown in this uncertain time. I wish you all the very best and hope that life will bring much happiness, success, and fulfillment. Please come back and see us when you can.
Professor Eden appears on screen on a balcony, holding an infant.
Professor Eden:
Hello, class of 2020. My name is Professor Eden. I taught some of you macroeconomic theory, and I just wanted to say congratulations on your graduation, and best of luck on what follows. Congratulations again from me and my family, including its youngest member, who's only two weeks old.
Gary Jefferson appears on screen in front of a large bookcase.
Gary Jefferson:
Hello, class of 2020. Some of you had been in my courses on the economy of China and the economics of innovation and change. I can imagine how incredibly disruptive and disappointing it is to have been so rudely displaced from your spring semester senior year. My own son is struggling to process the same experience. I'd like to take this brief opportunity to urge you to use the learning skills and the spirit that you nurtured at Brandeis to try to savor the many dimensions, health, economic, social, international, of this totally unique life experience that has been created for the class of 2020. For our Chinese students, [he says a greeting in Chinese], for all, congratulations.
Nader Habibi appears on screen in front of a black wall.
Nader Habibi:
Class of 2020 Department of Economics, congratulations. I'm Nader Habibi. I wish you good luck and success in this difficult year. I'm very sorry that you were not able to invite your relatives, your parents, to celebrate your graduation on campus. Best of luck, and greetings to you and your family.
Professor L'Huillier appears on screen in front of a white wall.
Professor L'Huillier:
Hi, I'm Professor L'Huillier from the economics department. I want to send a message to all the seniors graduating this year. It's been a little bit difficult, exceptional circumstances for everybody, but don't forget that it is in crisis that things move forward, so make sure that you do the same thing in your lives. I'm sure everything is gonna be fine, and I wish you all the best. We're very proud of our seniors. Thanks for being a part of Brandeis. Take care. Best of luck.
Nelson Sa appears on screen in front of a white wall, next to a Darth Vader doll that is wearing a mask.
Nelson Sa:
Hello, everyone. My name is Nelson Sa. I'd like to congratulate all of you on your graduation. Well done. You worked hard, you suffered, but you succeeded, and you will succeed again in life. Times may be dark now, but the Force will be with you, and so will Brandeis.
Elizabeth Brainerd appears on screen in front of the Samuel Lemberg Academic Center.
Elizabeth Brainerd:
Thank you to our faculty for those greetings. Before closing, I want to take a moment to recognize our department administrators, Eliza Dumais and Leslie Yancich, who did truly outstanding work to create and coordinate the online celebration you have just seen. Day in and day out, Leslie and Eliza help to manage the department and our undergraduate program, and they went above and beyond the call of duty to keep things running smoothly when we went online. Thank you to Leslie and Eliza for the truly fantastic work that you do.
I also thank Dan Jennings and the great staff at Media Technology Services who provided expert support in putting this video celebration together.
I would also like to recognize and extend my gratitude to our faculty for their dedication to our students and for their extraordinary efforts to move our classes online this semester. While things didn't always go smoothly, I believe you succeeded in making the rest of the semester a rich and meaningful learning experience for our students. You did this with creativity, with compassion, while at the same time dealing with huge disruptions in your own lives. You also managed to prove beyond any reasonable doubt that you can in fact teach old dogs new tricks. Thank you for your dedication to our students.
And finally, to our students, here we are in this historic moment of doubt and uncertainty, not where you expected to find yourself as your Brandeis career comes to a close. There may be uncertainty, but there is one thing that is certain: You will all be okay. You are all resilient, talented, intelligent and hardworking individuals. You have the tools and the willpower to succeed even in these challenging times. Better days are ahead, and I know you will all get there. Class of 2020, each of you has earned the right to join the distinguished group of alumni bearing a Brandeis degree. We congratulate you on your past achievements and wish you all the best in your future studies and careers, whatever and wherever these may be. Thank you and best wishes to the class of 2020.
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Special Thanks
The Economics Department Staff
Leslie Yancich & Eliza Dumais
Dan Jennings & The MTS Team
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Thank you for joining us!
Our Economics Faculty will be hosting Zoom meetings for graduates and families. All links have been sent to graduates in advance.
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Brandeis University
Department of Economics
Celebrating the Class of 2020