About Me

This page is supposed to tell you a little bit about who I am outside of the classroom. In order to accomplish this, I will attempt to answer some of the "most frequently asked questions" concerning this topic (in no particular order).

I was born in Western Pennsylvania and grew up in a small town (60,000 people) just north of Pittsburgh. I have one older brother (Tom) who still lives in that area.

I started my college career at Youngstown State University and received both Bachelors and Masters degrees from YSU and went on to do another Masters degree and my doctoral work at West Virginia University. All of my degrees are in Economics.

I have held a variety of jobs in my lifetime (many during the academic year). I have worked in a bicycle store (mechanic), done janitorial work (never again), driven a truck, built houses, worked as a statistician, and taught at a very large state university.

I came to USI in the fall of 1988.

I am a tenured full professor of economics. 

I like to play golf and walk (I am still trying to learn to play golf after three years).

I really like a good game of baseball (especially at the minor league or college level). I was a catcher once upon a time.

I like playing and watching all sports (except professional basketball which violates all of the rules of basketball), and am always willing to talk about sports.

I love my job. I wish that all of you find something that you like to do as much as I like to teach economics and statistics (I know you think it is boring, but…).

I really do have a open door office policy. I am in my office every day and if you need/want to see me and the door is open - come in (if it is closed, just knock).

Family Stuff

I am married to another USI business professor (Peggy Shields - marketing). We live on the outer north side of Evansville and have three children Heather (she and her husband Adam live in St. Louis -- Go Cards), Laura (an IU grad is still living in Bloomington), and Aaron (at home and my golfing buddy), two cats (Standley (the man) and Daisy (the kitten) and a yellow lab puppy named Beau. I enjoy being a father and step-father and find being a husband and parent to be a constant source of amusement (don't ask Peggy about who is laughing most of the time).

Traveling is our family "hobby." We love to travel as a family and try to take a nice trip each summer.

During the summer of 2008 we traveled to Colorado (Colorado Springs) and to New Mexico (Taos) to visit with family and had a wonderful time.

Having the time and ability to travel and experience other places and cultures is one of the true benefits of this job.