Becker Friedman Institute at UChicago and the Hutchins Center at Brookings Announce 2024 Cohort for the Expanding Diversity in Economics Summer Institute

The Becker Friedman Institute for Economics (BFI) at The University of Chicago, in collaboration with the Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy at the Brookings Institution are pleased to announce the 2024 cohort of the Expanding Diversity in Economics (EDE) Summer Institute.

The EDE program was launched by BFI in 2021 and aims to increase diversity in economics through finding and supporting outstanding undergraduates who are interested in the field. Through the EDE Summer Institute, BFI and the Hutchins Center are dedicated to fostering a new generation of academics and professionals who draw on the tools of economics to offer new perspectives and research ideas, and eventually make a positive impact in the world.

The EDE Summer Institute will take place from June 6 to June 29, 2024, with two weeks of programming on the UChicago campus followed by one week in Washington, DC, hosted by the Hutchins Center.

“We are thrilled with this year’s cohort,” said Erik Hurst, the Frank P. and Marianne R. Diassi Distinguished Service Professor of Economics at Chicago Booth and recently named Director of BFI. “The program keeps growing, and the talent and diversity of this group of students reflects that.”

The 45 participants in the 2024 cohort were selected through a holistic and rigorous evaluation process involving nearly 1,000 applications. The cohort represents 33 universities across 17 states. The majority of participants (91%) are first- or second-year undergraduate students, with an average GPA of 3.7. Approximately 42% are first-generation college students, and 60% are Pell Grant recipients or have annual household incomes less than $20,000.  Women comprise 56% of the cohort; 29% of the cohort identify as Black or African American, and 30% as Hispanic or Latinx.

Since 2021, the EDE Summer Institute has built an alumni network of 128 students, many of whom have remained active in EDE as UChicago summer research assistants, or other internships introduced to them by EDE.

The Chicago-based programming will focus on microeconomic research and applied economic analysis, giving students a rare chance to participate in programs including technical skill building, daily course instruction from faculty, guest talks, and field trips. Prior participants have engaged with more than 20 UChicago professors and renowned economists from a wide range of fields, including Nobel Laureates Ben Bernanke, Douglas Diamond, James Heckman, Michael Kremer, Roger Myerson, and Richard Thaler, UChicago Provost Katherine Baicker, Freakonomics author Steve Levitt, Chicago Booth economist Marianne Bertrand, as well as business leaders and UChicago Trustees Jason Tyler, COO of Northern Trust, and John Rogers, Chairman of Ariel Investments.

Last year EDE expanded with an inaugural DC-based week hosted by the Hutchins Center. Participants engaged in coursework and applied group projects, and learned from current and former government officials, private sector researchers, and early career professionals including Seth Carpenter of Morgan Stanley, Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook, Joyce Chang and Makada Henry-Nickie of JPMorgan Chase,  and Brookings’s Nicol Turner Lee and Louise Sheiner. This summer, the 2024 cohort will again travel to DC to learn about the important role that economists play in making fiscal and monetary policy.

“One of our priorities at the Hutchins Center is diversifying the pipeline of young people studying economics and pursuing careers in public policy and academia,” said David Wessel, Senior Fellow in Economic Studies at Brookings and Director of the Hutchins Center. “Partnering with the Becker Friedman Institute on the EDE Summer Institute has been instrumental toward that goal, and we are looking forward to continuing the momentum with another week in DC this summer.”

EDE prioritizes the inclusion of students from all socioeconomic backgrounds. The costs of housing, travel and participation are covered for all participants, who also receive a stipend of $1,200 ($2,400 for Pell-Grant-eligible students) upon successful completion of the program.

EDE is supported by UChicago’s Booth School of Business, the Kenneth C. Griffin Department of Economics, the Division of Social Sciences, the Brookings Institution, Northern Trust, Ariel Investments, AQR Capital Management, and the University of Chicago Alumni. Past support for the program has been provided by Peter G. Peterson Foundation, JPMorgan Chase & Co., and the Lumina Foundation.

“The EDE Summer Institute alters students’ academic and career trajectories,” said Quentin Johnson, BFI’s Director of Diversity and Inclusion Program, and Program Director of EDE. “We are already seeing it with some of our alumni who are now Research Professionals at UChicago. We can’t wait to see how this year’s cohort will contribute to the program.”

Meet the 2024 EDE cohort here.

For more information visit: bfi.uchicago.edu/ede/ or contact EDE Program Director Quentin Johnson at summerecon@uchicago.edu.

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