News

I’m graduating from Chambers College in four months. My path looks nothing like what I pictured on my first day at West Virginia University—and I couldn’t be happier.

I transferred to WVU at the beginning of my sophomore year. I had aspirations of being a lawyer. I was thrilled to be accepted into the ECON 3+3 program and was destined to be a lawyer in just five years. My first semester here I took the “Law and Economics” class. I found the analysis of the legal field using economics fascinating.

Seasons change throughout the year, and their economic impact can be seen right here in Morgantown.  During the fall and winter, everyone moves indoors to enjoy activities like axe throwing and escape rooms. In summer, everyone’s outside enjoying the warm weather, kayaking on the Mon River, and hiking through Coopers Rock.

But why do we see this shift in local economic activity?

Meet Kristi Birchfield, a West Virginia native and an online MS Econ graduate of the Chambers College. 

Originally from Jonben, West Virginia – a small coal town in Raleigh County – Birchfield headed to Midway University in Kentucky for college where she received her undergraduate degree in business administration. 

Joshua Hall took the helm of West Virginia University’s John Chambers College of Business and Economics in August 2021, just in time for the opening of Reynolds Hall for the fall term. The 186,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art learning and research complex features experiential learning classrooms, a real-time stock ticker, computer labs, a 300-seat auditorium, atrium, study rooms, a cafe, green space and a fitness center. During Hall’s nine years at WVU, he has also held positions including professor, economics department chair and associate dean for research. He is also co-author of the annual Economic Freedom of the World report.

Building anything requires investment of time and teamwork. Taking a vision as grand as transforming the future of business education at WVU required partnership from our engaged alumni, internal teams in our college and across WVU. Through these synergies, we thoughtfully approached every detail to address what students and faculty needed to be successful not only on day one, but (also) to ensure we could be nimble enough to address what they needed in year 10 to stay on the cutting edge of business education.

Gentrification doesn’t erase drug crime and gun violence. Instead, research from West Virginia University economist Zachary Porreca shows that when one urban block becomes upwardly mobile, organized criminal activity surges outward to surrounding blocks, escalating the violence in the process.

Porreca, a WVU doctoral student in the John Chambers College of Business and Economics, analyzed 2011-2020 data on shootings and real estate across various Philadelphia neighborhoods. His paper presenting the findings, published in the Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, is one of the first of its kind to study the impact of gentrification on crime displacement.

(Editor’s Note: This is the second in a series of news releases highlighting ways WVU is serving the Mountain State. Access photos, video and additional resources in a Media Toolkit from WVUToday.)

Faith Figgins, an economics graduate from Martinsburg, WV, chose her major because she saw it as a well-rounded program and found that there are endless opportunities within the major.

“WVU offered the best opportunity to pursue whatever my heart desired,” said Figgins. “Within the economics program, the courses hone in on analytic and problem-solving skills applicable to the personal and professional world. The department is full of people who are eager to learn, and mentors that are knowledgeable and willing to guide you on your own path.”

Since 2020, COVID-19 has squeezed the healthcare industry into a stranglehold that’s caused staffing shortages and restricted access to quality patient care. This forced some policymakers to enact temporary waivers of licensing restrictions to ease up those burdens.

Researchers at the John Chambers College of Business and Economics at West Virginia University recognized these events and decided to offer their own expertise on how to address the primary care shortage stemming from the pandemic.

A leadership gift to West Virginia University from longtime supporters Ken and Randy Kendrick will allow the John Chambers College of Business and Economics to transform economics education through innovative programs for high-schoolers and educators statewide via the new Kendrick Center for an Ethical Economy.

The $40 million partnership with the Kendricks complements broader efforts to make WVU a purpose-driven leader in higher education. Over the next 10 years, WVU will dedicate approximately $20 million – including repurposed funds, in-kind support and new investments – to the project, while the Kendricks will contribute $20 million over that same time period, making their commitment one of the largest gifts in the history of the Chambers College.

You could say Seattle came alive with more than an even flow of tourism dollars from a pair of highly-anticipated Pearl Jam concerts, according to rockin’ new research by West Virginia University economists.

Dubbed the “Home Shows,” two Pearl Jam concerts in August 2018 helped net the seaport city $58 million in additional hotel revenue and $9 million in hotel tax revenue. Compare that to Seattle Mariners baseball games, which generate $140,000 in additional hotel revenue on game days, and the researchers make a clear case for large, one-off events as economic boosters.