Members of Elon’s College Fed Challenge team participated in the conference hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.
Five Elon students traveled to Virginia to participate in the 2022 Diverse Economics Conference hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.
James Folds ’23, JD Grant ’23, Emma Leonard ’25, Cole Meixsell ’25 and Pacey Salzman ’25, all members of Elon’s 2022 College Fed Challenge team, learned about various career paths in economics, networked with private and public sector economists and other professionals in the field, and toured the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.
The conference highlighted successful women and people of color in economics. “Diversity in economics is critical to ensuring that the right questions are being asked, yet less than 25 percent of economists are people of color, and no more than 30 percent of career economists are women,” the conference webpage stated.
Dana Peterson, chief economist and center leader of economy, strategy and finance at The Conference Board, delivered the keynote address, sharing inspiring stories about her unplanned career trajectory.
Her presentation “reassured us that there is more than one way to become an economist,” Grant said.
Grant added, “The Diverse Economics Conference was an amazing opportunity to hear from a wide range of economists, as well as talk with recent college graduates currently working at the different Federal Reserve Banks. As a senior applying to jobs at the FED, this experience was invaluable! Getting to speak with recent college graduates about their experiences at the FED provided incredible insight and got me excited about post-grad life.”