Jeremy Horpedahl stays busy in the University of Central Arkansas’ College of Business (COB) – from serving on Faculty Senate to director of the Arkansas Center for Research in Economics (ACRE) to associate professor to public appearances in varying forms of media – which makes his impact in the community noteworthy through his many accomplishments as he strives to help students, citizens and policymakers understand Arkansas’ economy.
Horpedahl has served as a representative of the COB for Faculty Senate and on several committees in the COB.
As director of ACRE, his focus is multifaceted. This unique group consists of other faculty members in the COB and offers research opportunities and topic-specific reading groups each semester for students. Additionally, he organizes bringing in guest speakers to discuss topics students and faculty are focusing on for a greater understanding of economics.
“It’s the people involved that make ACRE,” Horpedahl said, “It’s myself and several other faculty members and the big thing we do is programs for students. The goal is to get them interested in economics and understand how economic policy influences the world. We bring in speakers to give lectures and these events aren’t just for students; they’re open to the public.”
As an associate professor, he educates upper-division economics majors and freshmen from across campus while researching and publishing articles in academic journals.
Outside of the classroom, Horpedahl has an impressive number of publications about tax reform. He has partnered with experts at the Tax Foundation to examine how to reform and reduce taxes in Arkansas. Horpedahl writes op-eds for outlets such as The New York Times, Newsweek and Bloomberg.
He also enjoys the challenge of public appearances on local news and radio outlets, podcasts, blog posts and more because they enlighten the public and assist him with creating innovative strategies for the classroom.
“I do enjoy the challenge of trying to say, ‘How can we get people to want to hear about this?’ that’s what is fun for me, trying to find a way to make economics interesting to people because I think everyone grasps its importance,” he said.
Horpedahl’s accomplishments have not gone unnoticed. He’s won numerous awards, including the UCA College of Business Exemplary Boundary Spanner Award, the Societal Impact Award from COB and Best Paper in Public Choice by a Senior Scholar.