FLUBA Adviser Makes Good

The Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers of the Fly Under the Bridge Academy, Mark Patrick Witte, further enriches Northwestern University:

A team of Northwestern University students yesterday won a national competition and a share of $47,000 in scholarships and awards, testing their knowledge of how the Federal Reserve creates policy to foster a strong and stable economy.

The competition, called the "College Fed Challenge," was held at Federal Reserve Board headquarters in Washington D.C. and included teams from three Federal Reserve Districts -- New York, Richmond and Chicago.

Winning team members Aditya Damani, Alexander Leung, Rosa Li, Derek Moeller, and Josh Plavner beat teams from Rutgers University in New Jersey and Lafayette College in Pennsylvania. The Northwestern coach is Dr. Mark Witte.

Each team was comprised of three-to-five undergraduate economics students. They used their research of existing economic, financial and international conditions to prepare a forecast of the economy, to identify potential concerns, and to make recommendations for national monetary policy.

"The Northwestern team presented a good analysis, and they were extremely poised," said Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Economic Education Specialist Tim Schilling, who coordinated the competition for the Bank. "They were also well prepared to answer the judges' questions."

The FLUBA Compensation Committee expects a more difficult salary negotiation when Prof. Witte's contract expires next year.