Curriculum Vitae
Education
- 2018Ph.D. Economics, Louisiana State University
- 2016M.S. Economics, Louisiana State University
- 2013M.S. Finance, Central University of Finance and Economics, China
- 2010B.S. Information & Computing Science, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, China
Academic positions
- 2026 to presentAssociate Professor of Economics, Department of Economics, University of Memphis
- 2022 to presentDirector, Methodist Le Bonheur Center for Healthcare Economics, University of Memphis
- 2022 to 2026Assistant Professor of Economics, Department of Economics, University of Memphis
- 2020 to 2022Assistant Professor of Finance and Applied Economics, Wright School of Business, Dalton State College
- 2018 to 2020Postdoc Research Associate, Private Enterprise Research Center, Texas A&M University
- 2019 to 2022Editorial Board, Journal of International Commerce, Economics and Policy
Research interests
Economics of Education, Health Economics, Labor Economics, Economics of Culture, Subjective Well-Being, Applied Econometrics
Grants
- 2024Racial/Gender Disparities in Early Retirement Decisions During the COVID-19 Pandemic (with Grace Arnold and Jhacova Williams). Co-PI. $125,000. Sponsor: Social Security Administration.
- 2022Designing A Culturally Tailored Diet Management Application for Type 2 Diabetic Patients (with Yafang Li, Pavankumar Mulgund, and Sandra Richardson). Co-PI. $2,500. Sponsor: FedEx Institute of Technology and Division of Research & Innovation at the University of Memphis.
Publications and teaching
Research and publicationsTeaching
Presentations and conferences
- 2024Peking University and Yale University Summer Camp, Mao Xian, Sichuan, China
- 2023Southern Economic Association Annual Conference, New Orleans, LA
- 2022University of Memphis, Memphis, TN
- 2022University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX
- 2019Dalton State College, Dalton, GA
- 2019Western Economic Association Annual Conference, San Francisco, CA
- 2019Association for Education Finance and Policy (AEFP), Kansas City, MO
- 2018Private Enterprise Research Center, Texas A&M University
- 2016Southern Economic Association Annual Conference, Washington, D.C.
- 2016The Study of the Religion, Economics and Culture Workshop, Chapman University, CA
- 2015Louisiana State University, Department of Economics, LA
Referee service
Applied Economics Letters, China Economic Review, Eastern Economic Journal, Economic History Review, Economic Modelling, Economics of Education Review, Empirical Economics, Energy Economics, Health Economics, Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Journal of Economic Insight, Journal of Labor Research, Journal of International Commerce, Economics and Policy, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, Journal of Population Economics, Journal of Public Economics, Justice Evaluation Journal, Oxford Economic Papers, Population Studies, Public Finance Review, Quarterly Journal of Economics, Review of Behavioral Economics, Review of Economics of the Household, Scientific Reports, Social Science & Medicine, Southern Economic Journal, World Bank Working Paper Series
Honors and awards
- 2026George Johnson Research Fellowship Award, Fogelman College of Business & Economics, University of Memphis
- 2026First-Time Principal Investigator Award, University of Memphis
- 2016Dean's Awards for Summer Research, Louisiana State University
- 2016Grant from the IRES Graduate Student Workshop, Chapman University
- 2016Travel Grant, Department of Economics, Louisiana State University
- 2013 to 2018Teaching Assistantship, Department of Economics, Louisiana State University
- 2013 to 2015Graduate School Supplement Awards, Louisiana State University
- 2010Honorary Title of Excellent Graduate, Suzhou University of Science and Technology
- 2007, 2008Honorary Title of Outstanding Student, Suzhou University of Science and Technology
- 2008Excellent Student Scholarship, First Prize, Suzhou University of Science and Technology
- 2007Excellent Student Scholarship, Special Prize, Suzhou University of Science and Technology