Department of Economics and Professional Leadership Development

Chair, Economics and Professional Leadership Development

DeEdgra Williams, Ph.D.

The Economics program provides students with a strong foundation in economic theory, quantitative analysis, and market dynamics while cultivating leadership skills, ethical reasoning, and a global perspective. By studying microeconomics, macroeconomics, statistical methods, and economic policy; alongside coursework in organizational behavior, professional leadership, and decision-making; students gain the ability to understand and interpret economic trends, assess fiscal and regulatory environments, and forecast socioeconomic outcomes.

The Professional Leadership Development (PLD) program offers a structured series of modules that emphasize behavioral competency development. Students engage in activities that build confidence, oral and written communication skills, goal-setting, results orientation, and time management. Learning takes place in dynamic “company” settings, where participants collaborate on challenging projects and leadership functions that simulate real-world business environments.

Faculty Spotlight: Dr. Dennis Ridley

Artificial Intelligence in Human Collaboration: Skills Invocation, Recovery and Enhancement examines how AI systems can strengthen the way people work together by supporting the activation, restoration, and improvement of key collaborative abilities. The article explores how AI tools can prompt individuals to engage essential teamwork skills, help recover them when they lapse, and enhance overall performance through adaptive feedback and intelligent assistance. By analyzing human; AI interaction across organizational and educational settings, the authors highlight AI’s potential to elevate communication, coordination, and problem‑solving while also noting the need for thoughtful integration to ensure these technologies complement rather than replace human strengths. More>>

Faculty Research Spotlight: Dr. Dennis Ridley

In The Mystery of Wealth by Dennis Ridley, PhD (and Andrea Nelson, JD), the author presents a macroeconomic framework (the “CDR” model: Capitalism, Democracy, Rule of Law) to explain why some nations grow rich while others remain poor. Ridley argues that — more than natural resources or geography — it’s the presence (or lack) of these three institutional pillars that largely determines a country’s economic success, making wealth and poverty the outcomes of policy choices and political-economic structure rather than random luck. The book thus demystifies wealth at a nation-state level, showing that stable institutions and good governance are the true drivers of prosperity. Read More >>

Faculty Research Spotlight: Dr. Dennis Ridley

The “Rule of Law Paradox” lies in the fact that although rule of law is often thought of as a structural/institutional attribute of society, its very foundation rests on a deeper, more intangible and often fragile human phenomenon: collaboration. Read More >>