Keith Maskus Graduate Fellowship Fund in Economics
To provide support for graduate students in the Department of Economics in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder in honor of Keith E. Maskus. If $100,000 is reached, the fund will convert to an endowment.
In honor of Keith and his fields of expertise, preference will be given to PhD students with interest in International Trade and Finance, Development and/or Innovation economics.
“In graduate school at the University of Michigan in 1976, I planned to become a development economist and save the world. But the world wasn’t quite ready to be saved by development economics. When Professor Robert Stern asked me to be his RA, I switched to international economics. I learned he traveled internationally; that’s what I wanted to do, this definitely worked out for me!
“In 1981 I immediately began my career at CU Boulder as an assistant professor. The economics department hired four young international economists. This concentration was important for it convinced the department to build a center of excellence in the field that has lasted to this day. Economics at CU is world famous for its research and teaching in international trade. Our reputation attracted outstanding graduate students, many of whom became my dissertation advisees and coauthors, plus lifelong friends.
“My career has been unusual for its devotion to both academic and professional service. It is rare for an academic economist to remain at the same job throughout a career, from assistant professor to retirement and it is highly unusual for a professor to cross boundaries between basic research and policy work. I have devoted considerable time and effort to both. Academically, that reflects how much I have enjoyed living in Boulder, teaching at CU, and working with colleagues and students. Most importantly, I spent seven years as the Associate Dean for Social Studies at CU Boulder, a position I enjoyed even with its frustrations.
“In many ways I feel that I’ve had four careers: teacher, researcher, administrator, and global policy advisor. All were interesting and rewarding and have left me with friends and colleagues throughout the world. It has been an excellent ride.”
