Alan Bartley loves to travel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He has led several May term travel courses to places like Costa Rica and the Philippines. To improve his skills as a guide in Central America, he participated in a month-long Spanish immersion class in Costa Rica, where he stayed with a family that didn\u2019t speak English and rode the bus to class every day. Now, when he takes students to Spanish-speaking areas, he\u2019s not always reliant on a translator.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bartley has recently led a service learning course in the Philippines, where students study the island nation\u2019s history and culture, concentrating on questions of race and ethnicity. At times they live without air conditioning, taking showers out of buckets. They work with communities on Mactan Island, just south of Cebu City.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe want students to see how others live. It\u2019s still learning, so we have course objectives, but it\u2019s more of a cooperative effort. Students can take leadership roles and take risks, because they don\u2019t have to worry about failing the credit\/no credit course.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
So what does all of this have to do with economics? Bartley is a \u201cbig believer in liberal arts.\u201d He feels it\u2019s important for students to have a lot of varied experiences. College is the time to learn about critical thinking and problem solving, and gain a theoretical foundation in economics. There will be time for specialization later, during graduate school, internships, or on the job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There\u2019s no better way to see where you stand in this world, to test your own humanity, than to visit other people first-hand. I learn every time I travel. I think my students do, too.<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n As part of that philosophy, he encourages his students to pursue summer research projects and present their findings at the Kentucky Economic Association conference each October, where several Transylvania students have won the award for best student paper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not every economics student will be interested in research, however. Again, this is a time for trying new things. At the conference, \u201cThey can see how good they are. They can see other students from regional schools present and they can say, \u2018Where am I compared to everyone else?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For those economics students interested in law\u2014and nearly half of the university\u2019s econ majors are\u2014Bartley has another litmus test. His wife is an attorney at a large law firm in Lexington, where she serves on the committee that selects summer interns. When Bartley\u2019s students are juniors or seniors, he invites them to a casual gathering at his house, where students can talk to his wife and learn about the skills and experiences law firms are looking for in potential employees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And, finally, Bartley has some advice for those students simply looking for a quiet place to reflect on the world\u2019s problems or contemplate the merits of a particular economic theory: don\u2019t miss the fishing at nearby Cave Run Lake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ph.D., Vanderbilt University, 2000 Seminar in Economics Microeconomics Editor of the peer-reviewed Journal of Applied Economics and Policy<\/em> American Economics Association Bingham Award for Excellence in TeachingAcademic History<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
M.A., Vanderbilt University, 1998
B.A., Transylvania University, 1993<\/p>\n\n\n\nCourses Taught at Transy<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Public Finance
Environmental Economics<\/p>\n\n\n\nAreas of Specialization<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Public policy issues<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nRecent Publications<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
2003\u201304 President of Kentucky Economic Association
Faculty advisor for Delta Sigma Phi fraternity<\/p>\n\n\n\nProfessional Memberships<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
National Association of Forensic Economists<\/p>\n\n\n\nAwards<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Member, Kentucky State Legislature’s Consensus Forecasting Group<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":4418,"template":"","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"academic_division":[19,41,43,45,3],"class_list":["post-300","faculty","type-faculty","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\n