When I was in tenth grade, I became interested in capital markets and soon discovered the field of Economics. I quickly understood that Economics is the core of all aspects of business fundamentals and capital market performance.  I became more interested in learning how macroeconomic policy and market dynamics impact business strategy, performance, and valuations.  I also was curious to learn how microeconomic concepts impact and support business decisions and execution.  It became clear to me that Economics has a significant impact on society by providing a framework for prioritization and decision making by individuals, businesses, and government.  I realized studying Economics would help me to develop a valuable horizontal discipline and a foundation that would lead to broad opportunities as I advanced my education and career.

My experience at Temple made a lasting positive impression on me.  Temple’s culture, values, committed faculty and staff, and my interactions with other Temple students all have contributed to my accomplishments.  President Peter Liacouras’ leadership, love for Temple, and his focus on advancing opportunities for all students and maintaining key core values really resonated with me and have influenced how I have approached my entire career.

Many Temple instructors had a meaningful impact on me. Dr. Jay Mandle had the greatest impact.  His ability to communicate complex economic concepts in terms that made sense to young undergraduate students was remarkable.  I enrolled in multiple classes taught by Dr. Mandle.  The themes from those economic development and modernization classes have stayed with me throughout my graduate education and career.  The concepts I learned have been the foundation for me to help companies navigate different macroeconomic environments, while optimizing strategy and execution to profitably scale.  This brought increased value for all stakeholders including investors, employees, customers, vendors, and the social ecosystems affected by these companies.

The time I spent at Temple and my Economics major provided the fundamental principles on which I built during my graduate education at the University of Southern California and throughout my career.  The knowledge and approach I gained from Temple have allowed me to develop quantitative and qualitative analytical skills to optimize decision making and problem solving. My Temple Economics major provided a basis for me to understand a broad range of business topics, and it has helped me to have a positive impact on business strategy, operations, and performance as an executive and leader.

Dr. Jeffrey Coons has over 35 years of investment industry experience, including his current role as Chief Risk Officer and Director of Institutional Services at High Probability Advisors. He served in a wide variety of investment-related and management-related roles over his career, including as a C-suite executive, a research director, a risk manager, an investment strategist/economist, a quantitative and fundamental portfolio manager, and an investment consultant.

As has been the case throughout his career, Dr. Coons’ efforts center on the importance of understanding and managing investment risks faced by clients across varying market environments. He has been a frequent writer of white papers and speaker at conferences on a broad range of investment topics and has participated in many national media interviews over the years. Jeff’s academic background includes a BA in Economics from the University of Rochester and a Ph.D. in Economics from Temple University.

Three Questions for Jeff Coons

What first attracted you to Economics?

From my first Economics class in high school, I knew that this would be my lifetime field of study. Through the lens of Economics, individual decisions and behaviors began to make sense. Economics quickly became the framework I used to evaluate and understand the world around me. Other academic disciplines and philosophies seemed to provide peripheral explanations for what I was observing, whereas Economics identified the core drivers of decisions and events.

What Economics courses or instructors at Temple made a particular impression on you?

There were many wonderful and dedicated professors that I learned from while in the graduate program at Temple University, including Erwin Blackstone, Mohsen Fardmanesh, Joseph Friedman, Simon Hakim, Michael Leeds, and William Stull. Of particular note, Michael Bognano and his Labor Economics course provided lessons that I have used in my management decisions and compensation plan designs throughout my career. Finally, Dimitrios Diamantaras had the greatest impact on my Temple experience, with a dedication to rigor and theory that influence how I approach challenging questions to this day.

How has your background in Economics affected your career?

Economics is a foundational discipline to help you understand the drivers of a problem and identify an effective solution. Thinking in economic terms has helped me make better decisions as an investor, a manager, and an executive.

Dr. Lacy Hunt is Executive Vice President and Chief Economist at Hoisington Investment Management Company.  Dr. Hunt holds a BA from Sewanee: The University of the South, an MBA from Wharton, and is the first person to receive a Ph.D. in Economics from Temple University.  Prior to his work at Hoisington, Dr. Hunt was Senior Economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Vice President for Monetary Economics at Chase Econometrics Associates, Executive Vice President and Chief Economist at Fidelity Bank, and Chief U.S. Economist for the HSBC Group.  His research has appeared in such publications as The Journal of Finance, he is the author of numerous books, and he is frequently quoted in leading business publications.

Three Questions for Lacy Hunt

​What first attracted you to Economics?

Bob Lyons’ Consumer Psychology course was very enlightening since Bob was a behavioral economist long before the term arose. I had a great relationship with Bob and Oscar Dooley, who was in charge of Ph.D. Admissions. Oscar and Bob attended the oral part of my Spanish fluency exam to provide moral support.  After the exam, I was asked to wait in the hall while I was graded. When Bob and Oscar came bounding out of the room and I saw the expressions on their faces, I knew the result.

What Economics courses or instructors at Temple made a particular impression on you?

I learned so much from Ingrid Rima, Nat Jackendoff, and Norman Sun and was incredibly close to all three. My career in macroeconomics, international economics, and finance would not have been possible without what they taught me, even though my own views eventually diverged sharply from what they had taught. They might not be surprised that this happened due to their outstanding advice to me as I was leaving Temple. They said that my knowledge in economics was up to date but reminded me that economics is a science, that the profession’s understanding would advance, and that it was my duty to keep abreast of the scientific discovery.

I also had a great relationship with our Dean, Seymour Wolfbien. He once told me to report to his office, which frightened me because he had a very commanding presence by which most doctoral students were intimidated. He directed me to tutor athletes, for which I would earn an additional $500 a semester, a princely sum in those days. This proved to be an incredible experience that introduced me to an entirely different aspect of Temple. Between my $300 a month fellowship and the tutoring funds, I was flush. When I announced my departure for Dallas, the athletes went to Seymour and asked him to keep me at Temple. He told them that both Lacy and Temple needed me to start a professional career outside Temple.

How has your background in Economics affected your career?

My career in macroeconomics and international economics and finance would not have been possible without what Ingrid, Nat and Norman taught me. We remained friends until their deaths. Lynn Holmes' course in mathematical economics gave me the skills for testing hypotheses. Charlotte Phelps helped me to select parts of my dissertation for publication. With the jump start that she gave me, several components of my thesis were eventually published in various scholarly journals, including the Journal of Finance. Those publications gave me professional visibility critical to my career development.