Pitt Economics Professor David N. DeJong Named Vice Provost for Academic Planning and Resources Management

PITTSBURGH—Professor David N. DeJong, chair of Pitt’s Department of Economics, has been named the University’s new Vice Provost for Academic Planning and Resources Management, Pitt Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor Patricia E. Beeson announced today. The appointment will be effective September 1.

“Dr. DeJong shares my strong commitment to the value of academic planning within the University and the effective integration of that planning with strategic use of our resources,” said Beeson, who assumed her duties as Pitt’s provost earlier this month. “I am looking forward to his important contributions to our senior staff team.”

In 1989, DeJong joined Pitt as an assistant professor in the School of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Economics; he was promoted to professor in 2001 and has served as chair of the department since 2006. He was a visiting professor at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Vienna; DiTella University in Buenos Aires; and the Kiel Institute for the World Economy in Kiel, Germany.

DeJong’s research focuses on macroeconomics, econometrics, and transition economics. He specifically focuses on the formal statistical implementation of theoretical models for the purpose of forecasting aggregate economic activity. He has received grants from the National Science Foundation and the National Council for Eurasian and East European Research. He has published widely in the top general interest journals in economics as well as in the leading field journals. In addition to writing more than 40 published refereed journal articles, he is the coauthor of the textbook Structural Macroeconomics (Princeton University Press, 2007). He also served as associate editor of the Journal of Business and Economic Statistics from 2000 to 2006.

DeJong utilizes his expertise in economics to assist in maintaining the University of Pittsburgh’s U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) forecasting model, which is accessible at www.dhariharan.info/dhlr/index.php. This model has proven useful for identifying post-war economic cycles and business-cycle turning points identified by the National Bureau of Economic Research.

DeJong’s service to the University goes beyond scholarly and instructional activities: He has served as a member of or representative to the University Planning and Budgeting Committee’s Parameters Subcommittee, the Advisory Committee for the Admission of Student Athletes, the NCAA Athletics Certification Subcommittee on Academic Integrity, the Faculty Admissions Support Team, and the Budget Committee of the Pitt Board of Trustees.

DeJong is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the Schenker Award for Outstanding Teaching of Principles of Economics (University of Pittsburgh, 1993), the Dissertation Support Award (National Bureau of Economic Research, 1989), and the Paul R. Olson Award for Excellence in Scholarship (University of Iowa, 1988). He is a member of the American Economic Association, the American Statistical Association, and the Econometric Society.

DeJong earned his Bachelor of Arts degree, summa cum laude, from Central College in Iowa in 1985 and his doctorate from the University of Iowa in 1989, both in economics.

###