CBEA
1000 E. University Avenue
Laramie, WY 82071
Phone: (307) 766-3124
Email: cbea@uwyo.edu
Director
College of Business Bldg 361
(307) 766-4931 | aadland@uwyo.edu
Website
Dr. David Aadland is the Director of the Center for Business and Economic Analysis (CBEA). He is a professor in the Department of Economics. He teaches Macroeconomics and Econometrics. His research interests have been wide and varied over the years. He has written papers in the areas of macroeconomics, non-market valuation, applied econometrics, behavioral economics, agricultural economics, and statistics. His recent research has focused on interdisciplinary natural resource questions and the intersection of ecology, epidemiology, entomology, and economics. In particular, he has been working on projects related to pine beetle epidemics, ecological impacts of energy development, and the economics of chronic wasting disease. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Oregon.
Associate Director
College of Business Bldg 362
(307) 766-4130 | aspecht3@uwyo.edu
Alexander Specht is the Associate Director of the University of Wyoming’s Center for Business and Economic Analysis (CBEA). Alexander has several years of experience in fiscal policy analysis, education policy, public utility regulation, and regional economic development. His research has been cited in academic journal articles, in U.S. Congressional testimony and committee reports. He has been cited as an authority in a significant U.S. Supreme Court case, has served as an expert witness on high-profile regulatory cases, been a featured panelist and speaker at various events, and has had economic analyses featured on radio and television news shows and quoted by the press. Alexander holds a B.S. in Finance and a B.S.in Economics from George Mason University and a M.A. in Economics from Claremont Graduate University.
Director of Outreach and Engagement
College of Business Bldg 372
aalex@uwyo.edu
Website
Anne Alexander served as Interim Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs at the University of Wyoming. She earned her Ph.D. in Economics at UW, and her Master’s and BBA in Economics from New Mexico State University. Dr. Alexander’s research and teaching focuses on the history of American capitalism, international economics, and health economics. She regularly speaks to statewide audiences and state and national media about the status of the Wyoming, US, and global economies. She produces an annual economic and statewide engagement report on the impacts of the University on the state, and she has authored several publications on the political and economic impacts of transboundary pandemics and the productivity effects of various diseases. Prior to her position in Academic Affairs, she was the Director of International Programs and Associate Dean of Outreach at UW. She has also served as a Resources Economist in the U.S. Department of State, Assistant Dean of the UW College of Business, and Director of the interdisciplinary Health Economics Policy Center at UW. She is an alumni of Leadership Wyoming, Class of 2013.
Energy Economist
College of Business Bldg 366
agebben@uwyo.edu
Alex Gebben is an Energy Economist conducting research with the Center for Business and Economic Analysis. He holds a B.S. in Petroleum Engineering and graduate degrees in Mineral and Energy Economics from the Colorado School of Mines. This background has led him to diverse research topics in the areas of ground water management, oil industry incentives, and unconventional methods of lithium recovery. He is particularly interested in how the industries of oil and gas, wind, geothermal, and nuclear power embody the responsive relationships between policy, natural resources, and economic outcomes. Before joining the CBEA he conducted research projects in conjunction with the Critical Materials Institute, as well as the USDA. Alex is an avid fly fisherman with a love for the outdoors, as well as a self-taught programmer.
Director of Energy Policy
College of Business Bldg 276
(307) 766-3843 | rgodby@uwyo.edu
Website
Dr. Rob Godby is an associate professor in the Economics Department at UW, and Acting Associate Dean of the Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources. He also serves as the Deputy Director of the University of Wyoming’s Center for Energy Regulation and Policy (CERP). Additionally, he serves as a Daniel’s Fund Ethics Initiative Faculty Fellow and is an adjunct faculty member with the MBA program at Pforzheim University in Germany. Outside his academic duties, Rob was appointed to serve on the State of Wyoming’s Consensus Revenue Estimating Group in 2019. His research areas include natural resource, energy and environmental economics, industrial organization, and macroeconomic policy. He is often interviewed by national and international news media on energy and macroeconomic issues. Outside of work, Rob enjoys spending time being walked by his dogs. His other passions include sports-car and bicycle racing, both of which he has participated in rather unsuccessfully.
Energy Economist
College of Business Bldg 365
dcooley3@uwyo.edu
Daniel is one of the Energy Economists at the Center for Business and Economic Analysis. He has a wide variety of research interests, but his published work focuses on the applications of machine learning to applied economics and the integrated nexus of food, energy, and water sectors. Daniel holds an undergraduate degree in Economics from Colorado State University, and he is finishing up his PhD in Mineral and Energy Economics from the Colorado School of Mines. Prior to delving into the world of Economics, Danielserved in the Marine Corps as an Arabic linguist from 2010 to 2016 where he served in Yemen and Iraq. Outside of work, Daniel enjoys spending time with his wife and many dogs, playing boardgames, and watching bad horror movies.
Senior Research Economist
College of Business Bldg 367
mhollan9@uwyo.edu
Morgan graduated with a PhD in economics from Florida State University in 2022 with research interests in the economics of automation, corporate finance, human capital, and the economics of disability. In addition, Morgan worked as an economic consultant for the FSU Center for Economic Forecasting and Analysis, pursuing applied research projects in a wide variety of fields. Today, Morgan focuses on economic research in the tourism and hospitality sectors in Wyoming. He is especially interested in researching and promoting policies that will help Wyoming take full advantage of its outdoor recreation resources while preserving them for future generations. Morgan also provides support services to stakeholders in the tourism and hospitality sector through economic research and analysis.
Research Economist
College of Business Bldg 363
nzafar@uwyo.edu
Nida Zafar is a Research Economist at the Center of Business and Economic Analysis (CBEA). She is also a Ph.D. candidate at the Department of Economics at the University of Wyoming. Her dissertation is focused on developing new methods in econometrics and applying them to topics in environmental and energy economics. After her B.S., she co-founded and managed a consulting firm in Pakistan to help textile industries lower their production costs. In the US, she is interested in research to facilitate Wyoming’s economy. She holds a B.S. in Economics and Political Sciences and an M.S. in Economics from Lahore University of Management Sciences, Pakistan. Outside of work, she loves doing nature photography, playing board games, watching movies, and exploring the outdoors with friends.
Interim Vice Provost; Digital, Distance, and Online Education
College of Business Bldg 268W
(307) 766-2858 | bencook@uwyo.edu
Website
Dr. Benjamin Cook serves as the Interim Associate Vice Provost for Online, Distance and Digital Education as well as the Director of MBA and Online Graduate Programs in the College of Business. Dr. Cook received his PhD and Bachelor’s in Economics from the University of Wyoming and spent eight years as the Sr. Energy Economist for the Enhanced Oil Recovery Institute (EORI) prior to his administrative roles at UW. Dr. Cook specializes in applied energy economics and finance with subject matter work in oil & gas operations, enhanced oil recovery (EOR), CO2 capture, storage, and utilization (CCUS) and techno-economic project feasibility assessments. As a faculty member in the Department of Economics, and Faculty Fellow for the Center for Business & Economic Analysis (CBEA), Dr. Cook's project work is in partnerships with various public and private entities to derive actionable insights for policymakers and business decision-makers.
Professor, Agriculture & Applied Economics
Agriculture Bldg 2316C
(307) 766-5539 | coupal@uwyo.edu
Website
Dr. Roger Coupal is the Department Head and Professor in the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics at the University of Wyoming. His areas of expertise and teaching interests include natural resource policy, community development, economic impact analysis, and public lands policy. Coupal’s objective is to provide educational opportunities and information for community groups and public officials engaged in policy issues that reside in the nexus of community development and natural resource policy. He holds a PhD from Washington State University.
Associate Director, GFRC, UIC
ckhalaf@uwyo.edu
Website
Dr. Christelle Khalaf is the associate director of the Government Finance Research Center at the University of Illinois Chicago. Previously, she worked as the associate director of the CBEA. She continues to provide support to the CBEA as needed, especially as it pertains to the CORE-CM project.
Assistant Professor of Educational Research
Education 312
(307) 766-3187 | mperki17@uwyo.edu
Website
Dr. Mark Perkins is an associate professor of Educational Research Methods in the College of Education. He was formally the director of institutional research at Laramie County Community College. He currently serves on the Wyoming State Longitudinal Educational Data System. His research interests include the connection between local and state economies and educational systems. Methodologically, he has interests in R programming, psychometrics, structural equation modeling, machine learning, but also conducts qualitative research studies with particular interests in Grounded Theory and Phenomenology. His Ph.D. is from Colorado State University.
Assistant Professor, Agriculture & Applied Economics
Agriculture Bldg
(307) 766-2386 | avansand@uwyo.edu
Website
Anders Van Sandt is an Assistant Professor of Regional Economics and a Community Development Extension Specialist in the department of Agricultural and Applied Economics at the University of Wyoming. Dr. Van Sandt also serves as a Faculty Fellow with the Center for Business and Economic Analysis and is an active member of multiple applied economics and Extension associations. He received his Ph.D. in Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics from Colorado State University and his BA in Economics from Linfield University. His extension and research efforts revolve around promoting economic development by exploring rural-urban linkages, diversification of local industries, entrepreneurship, and community and industry interdependencies. Dr. Van Sandt’s current projects include increasing rural healthcare access through community engagement, leveraging community strengths for greater economic and environmental resilience, and working with restricted-access microdata through Federal Statistical Research Data Centers to model industry location decisions.
Research Professional - Center for Economic Geology Research
EIC Room 331
(307) 766-6835 | tbrown46@uwyo.edu
Dr. Tyler Brown is a Research Professional at the School of Energy Resources (SER) Center for Economic Geology Research. He earned his Ph.D. in Geology at the University of Wyoming and B.S. in Geology at Northern Arizona University. Before his work at SER, he spent seven years as a technician and then Director of the University of Wyoming’s Materials Characterization Laboratory. Tyler’s research focuses on geologic commodity assessment, emphasizing conventional and unconventional resources of Critical Minerals and Rare Earth Elements.
Research Assistant
jkirby2@uwyo.edu
Jacob Kirby was born in San Marcos, TX and raised in Austin, Texas and a small ranching community near Lampasas, Texas. Jacob served four years and was honorably discharged from the United States Marine Corps after serving in both Iraq and the Pirate Hunting Campaigns in Somalia. Jacob earned his Bachelor's degree in Biology with a minor in Business Administration from Texas State University in 2015, followed by a Master's in Business Administration from the University of Wyoming in 2023. He is presently pursuing a Master of Science in Economics degree at the University of Wyoming.
Research Assistant
kfatema@uwyo.edu
I am a first-year M.S. student in the Department of Economics. I received my BBA in Finance degree from North South University (Bangladesh) in 2019. My areas of research interest are economic forecasting and analysis, financial market valuation and regulation, and corporate finance. In my spare time, I love hiking, watching movies, and spending time with my family.
Research Assistant
dmcwhort@uwyo.edu
My name is a Dallas McWhorter and I am a 2nd year Master’s student in the economics department. I received my B.S. in economics from the University of Wyoming and am especially focused on the quantitative and statistical side of economics. Having grown up in Texas, I relocated to Wyoming in 2015 and enjoy the state. I hope to work in its unique economy following my graduation.
Research Assistant
ature@uwyo.edu
Angela Ture is a second-year Ph.D. student in the UWyo Department of Economics. She received her BA in Business Economics from the University of Exeter (UK). Her areas of interest include energy economics, natural resource economics, and applied economics. Angela loves music and spends her free time learning to play the piano.
Research Assistant
spaul7@uwyo.edu
Sayandeep Paul is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Economics at the University of Wyoming. His areas of interest are behavioral and experimental economics, natural resource and environmental economics, and energy economics. As part of the CBEA, he is working on the viability of nuclear energy in Wyoming. He holds a master’s degree in economics from the University of Calcutta, India. Sayandeep enjoys listening to podcasts, watching anime, reading books, and cooking in his spare time.
CBEA
1000 E. University Avenue
Laramie, WY 82071
Phone: (307) 766-3124
Email: cbea@uwyo.edu