April 26, 2019
Economics research leads to students’ State House presentation
By Ealish Brawley ’14
Three Providence College students working on an independent study in the Department of Economics dazzled their professors, an economic consulting firm, and members of Rhode Island state government with their research.
Matthew Carlson ’20 (Ramsey, N.J.), Kathleen Kuzmin ’19 (Simsbury, Conn.), and Giana Paolicelli ’20 (Staten Island, N.Y.) worked as economic consultants while participating in a pilot project with BW Research, an applied research firm with an office in Wrentham, Mass. They were able to apply the theories they learned in economics classes to practice during the independent study, which took place during the fall 2018 semester and was supervised by Dr. Fang Dong, assistant professor of economics.
BW Research focuses heavily on renewable energy and energy efficiency, and the focus of this independent study was employment within the solar industry. The three students formed a “sprint team” for BW Research. Sprint team members work on a variety of related issues with the goal of jointly creating a larger project for presentation.
Carlson, Kuzmin, and Paolicelli conducted literature reviews, determined which variables they would test, and compiled their findings in a joint paper entitled “The Determinants of Solar Employment: A Panel Data Model Approach for U.S. and Northeastern U.S. Solar Employment.” BW Research’s vice president, Phil Jordan, was their site supervisor, assisted by research manager Ryan Young.
Due to the significance of their findings and its bearings on the Northeast, the student sprint team, along with their supervisors, presented their research to the commissioner of the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources, Carol Grant, and her staff, at the State House. Jordan reported that Grant was excited by the students’ presentation and engaged with them by asking many questions.
The students found the opportunity to share their research at the State House a satisfying outcome for their hard work.
“Being able to apply what we have learned in the classroom to the real world and then present our findings to the state was a valuable learning experience, and it was rewarding to have potentially impacted state policies,” said Carlson.
Kuzmin echoed similar sentiments, saying she appreciated “presenting our findings to those not in the economics world, allowing us to truly understand our findings and translate them into actionable recommendations.”
Jordan called this pilot program with the College a huge success and was impressed by the young researchers’ abilities. His firm has worked on similar projects with other colleges and universities.
“PC students are set apart in a very simple, yet important way,” he said. “They are well rounded in their ability to interpret data into meaningful recommendations, which they are then able to communicate to their audience.”
Jordan credited their ability to translate numbers into action to their study of the liberal arts. “In the applied world, simply quantitative programs aren’t enough to prepare graduates,” he said.
Jordan also presented the paper to former U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz and his staff at Energy Futures Initiative, who have been developing a student research competition for graduate students to support expanding the competition to undergraduates.
Dr. MaryJane Lenon, associate professor of economics and the department’s faculty liaison for career education, spoke just as highly of Carlson, Kuzmin, and Paolicelli. Lenon was instrumental in organizing the pilot program with BW Research. Throughout the independent study she was continually impressed by the skills, collaborative spirit, and work ethic of the students, whom she characterized as the “best ambassadors for PC.”
Lenon also noted that this opportunity to work with BW Research will be valuable as they pursue graduate school or career opportunities.
Due to the pilot program’s resounding success, BW Research extended the sprint team project into the current spring semester. The new group of students began with the previous team’s research on solar employment as a baseline for their independent study.
Reflecting on the research, Paolicelli said the project was one of her most favorite and fruitful experiences of her PC education to date.
“I was able to apply and expand upon my econometric modeling skills that I had obtained in the classroom while also gaining valuable experience in business relations by working with BW. It was especially exciting and unique to have had the opportunity to present our research to the commissioner of energy resources of Rhode Island in an effort to impact policies in our state. That moment alone made the program so worthwhile,” she said.
