USU Seminar to Feature Freddie Mac Executive and an Award-Winning Economist

A Freddie Mac executive is among the speakers at a seminar at Utah State University Jan. 22 that  explores the causes of today’s economic woes and what may lie ahead.


Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist of Freddie Mac, will speak at the Partners in Business Financial Service Seminar on housing and mortgage conditions.         

“Nothaft will offer an analysis of the factors that have led to the financial market distress,” said Amy Merritt, assistant director of Partners in Business. “He will also provide an outlook for 2009.”

The theme of the 39th annual seminar, sponsored by the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business and held at the Eccles Conference Center on campus, is "Weathering the Financial Storm." 

Other speakers include the recently retired president and CEO of Mountain America Credit Union, Gordon R. Dames and the executive vice president of retail banking at Zion's First National Bank, LeeAnne B. Linderman. 

“The seminar will deal with the financial situation that the country faces, how we got to this point and where we go from here,” said the seminar coordinator, Melodie Coleman. 

The Huntsman School of Business will present Lars Peter Hansen, a 1974 USU graduate, with a Professional Achievement Award during the seminar luncheon. Hansen graduated with a degree in mathematics and now teaches at the University of Chicago where he is the Homer J. Livingston Distinguished Service Professor of Economics. He is the seminar’s concluding speaker.

Hansen, who has been recognized with several prestigious awards for his ground-breaking research, was honored last October with the 2008 CME (Chicago Mercantile Exchange) Group-MSRI (Mathematical Sciences Research Institute) Prize in Innovative Quantitative Applications.

The CME group is the world’s largest and most diverse financial exchange and it has partnered with the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute to recognize individuals or groups who “contribute original concepts and innovation in the use of mathematical, statistical or computational methods for the study of the behavior of markets, and more broadly, of economics,” according to a press release that announced the award.

Professional Achievement Awards are given by the Huntsman School of Business in “recognition of individuals who achieve extraordinary success in their careers and demonstrate uncommon leadership in their communities.”

Partners in Business is a non-profit organization in the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business managed by students under the direction of Ken Snyder, executive director of executive education and associate director of graduate programs. A series of seminars are presented throughout the academic year. The program began in 1970 as a way to bridge the gap between business students and their future employers.

The seminar is free for students; others who would like to attend may visit www.partners.usu.edu or phone 435-797-2279 to register.