Graduate Student Awards

The Economics Department, with the support of Laney Graduate School, awards graduate students annually:

1. Economics Graduate Student Research Award of Excellence 

   This award was established to honor a graduate student who exemplifies superb research abilities and an eagerness to engage in scholarly activities.

2. The Jack and Lewis Greenhut Graduate Student Teaching Award

   This award was established to honor a graduate student who exemplifies superb teaching abilities and demonstrates extraordinary dedication to teaching economics.

2026 Award Recipient is Marcelo Ortiz-Villavicencio

Marcelo Ortiz-Villavicencio, a fourth-year doctoral student, is making his mark in the field of Econometrics. His dedication and hard work have resulted in a co-authored paper receiving a Revise and Resubmit at a leading peer-reviewed journal. The work is co-authored with his advisor, but Marcelo played a pivotal role, driving the theoretical results, authoring the complex proofs, and ensuring the computational simulations were empirically relevant, reflecting the magnitude of his contribution.

This award showcases our graduate program's commitment to proven academic excellence and rigor.

2026 Award Recipient is Jafet Baca

Jafet Baca, a fourth-year doctoral student, is this year’s recipient of the Jack and Lewis Greenhut Graduate Student Teaching Award. Jafet served two consecutive fall semesters as the teaching assistant for Dr. Levy's Quantitative Methods 1 and 2, rigorous courses offered to first-year PhD students across Economics, the Business School, and the School of Public Health. Jafet has been exceptional in his role, functioning more as a co-teacher by diligently preparing and delivering new material during recitation meetings. In his nomination, Dr. Levy wrote, "He showed remarkable care for the students, which was very important given the pressure the students faced. The students valued his efforts and his teaching style very much, giving him high marks in teaching evaluations."

This award showcases our department's commitment to those who not only have the skills to become excellent researchers, but also care about students and their learning experience.