Personal History I was born in "El Barrio" in New York City in the middle 1930's; I am married; I have traveled extensively in Asia (U.S. Army), Africa and the Middle       East  (U.S. State Department), and Latin America (Fulbright Professor); I am a native Spanish speaker;  I completed an eight year military obligation;  I  retired from teaching at the end of the fall quarter of 2000; I retired from all my other professional activities in 2004; and, I was designated Emeritus Professor of Economics in 2002.

A few words about me. . . . I was designated Emeritus Professor of Economics in 2002. I was a  tenured Professor in both Economics and in Finance.  I was with  the University  from 1972 until my retirement in 2000.  I have worked for the Federal Reserve System as a Research Economist and for the U.S. Agency for International Development and the State Department as a Consulting Economist.  I have taught at Virginia Polytechnic Institute, Florida State University, University of Colorado, and the National Savings and Loan University.  I have served as a Fulbright Visiting Professor in Peru at various universities in the country and several in the capital, Lima.

I have traveled extensively in East and West Africa, in the Middle East, in East and South East Asia, in Central and South America, and in Europe.  After graduating at 17 from Jefferson High School in Tampa, Florida, I spent three years in the regular U.S. Army, much of it in Asia partly as a member of Special Forces and partly as a member of the 8th U.S. Army Honor Guard and Color Team. I spent  another five years as member of the Active Army Reserve (after my regular army service) and the Florida Army National Guard (before my regular army service).

During my 35 year academic career,  I have published numerous articles in professional journals, nearly a dozen monographs, and I  presented dozens of papers at various professional meetings.

Until my retirement in 2004, I was  licensed as a Commodity Trading Advisor and Commodity Pool Operator (a Series 3 Securities License) and managed a  commodity trading pool.  I have won several national and regional awards for my Television Commentary "Making ¢" on Channel 23 (CBS Affiliate).  I had my own Economic Consulting firm doing work in the Forensic Economics area assisting attorneys with economic issues such as the economic loss suffered in a personal injury, the value of the lost income in a wrongful termination action, and the value of a business.  I am married with two daughters, two step daughters, and seven grandchildren.  I live on a ranch in the Sierra Nevada.  My hobbies are shooting, snow skiing, scuba, and simulations, not necessarily in that order.

The Importance of Economics . . . Now let's explore Economics and why it is so vitally important to you.  Whether you like it or not, economics is a vital and pervasive part of your life now and of your life as a college graduate.  As an economics major or minor you will find the course contents to be among the most important  you will ever learn as an undergraduate.

You must know and understand the economic environment  in which you will be expected to survive and in which you will be expected to lead.  Your study of economics will help you sharpen your decision making skills by showing a logical way to evaluate alternative courses of action.  You will discover that every choice has both a benefit and a cost.  You will learn that there is "no free lunch." These courses will enhance your analytical abilities and will teach you the meaning of business and economic theories that you will be using everyday for the rest of your life.

As you should know, a major in economics provides a wide variety of career choices to you.  As a Liberal Art, Economics gives you the wide based Liberal Arts education so much in demand today from both Government and Business employers.  But it also develops the analytical skills that are vital to success in any career.  Economics majors are succeeding as entrepreneurs, diplomats, bankers, journalists, corporate leaders, consultants, judges, cabinet officers, and politicians (even  ex-presidents).  It is an excellent vehicle for entry into the Law and other areas of graduate study.  It is a very useful major and a very helpful minor.

In terms of salaries and opportunities, recent data show economics majors as commanding salaries well above the average for both Liberal Arts and Business Majors, and only slightly below engineers and computer programmers.  Most of you, during your life, will have many jobs, perhaps even several careers, but you will have only one undergraduate major; you should make it the best one you can get.