Professor Frank O'Connor will be providing an overview of the economic outlook for 2021.
Frank O'Connor has served as professor of economics at Eastern Kentucky University since 1989, and served as chair of the department from 1989 until 1997. Previously, he served on the faculty of Pennsylvania State University, University of Iowa, and Western Carolina University. He is a graduate of the National University of Ireland (Dublin), has a Masters degree from Penn State, and received his PhD from the University of Minnesota. In recent decades, his work has focused to a significant extent on the quantitative study of the economy of Kentucky, its regions, and those of the neighboring states in the upper South and lower Midwest. He has authored studies on econometric modeling of regions, the analysis of economic impacts, economic growth, and a variety of other regional issues, including the potential role of switchgrass and other dedicated energy crops in the economy of central Kentucky.