Donald A. Nichols, Ph.D, Professor emeritus
Professor emeritus of Economical and Public Affairs, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Donald Nichols is professor emeritus of Economics and Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He served as director of the La Follette School of Public Affairs from 2002 to 2006. His research is in the areas of macroeconomic theory and policy and regional economic policy. Don’s work has appeared in the American Economic Review, Journal of Political Economy and Review of Economics and Statistics. His most recent contribution is a new definition of an export base for a regional economy, which appeared in International Regional Science Review.
Professor Nichols is an award-winning teacher and has played a prominent role in public affairs, both nationally and in Wisconsin. He served on the staffs of the Council of Economic Advisers to the U.S. President in 1963 and the U.S. Senate Budget Committee in 1975 and 1976. He was Deputy Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Labor from 1977 to 1979 and Economic Advisor to the Governor of Wisconsin from 1983 to 1986. He serves on Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle’s Economic Advisory Council and on the board of Thompson Plumb Funds.
Don is a prolific writer and nationally recognized speaker, well known for his consistent record of accurate forecasting at Economic Outlook conferences. For more than 30 years, Don has focused his research, teaching and publications on those factors affecting unemployment, inflation and regional economic growth.
Professor Nichols received his doctorate in Economics from Yale University.