LED Spotlight: Meet the New LED Academic Team!

September is always a special time of year at Laurier as students arrive and a new academic year begins. Campus literally hums with energy and excitement.  It is also an excellent time to introduce Laurier Economic Department’s new academic team -- a group of faculty members who provide valuable leadership and service in support of our economics programs, students, and faculty. Have a question? One of these team members will usually know the answer.

Below, each team member shares a brief overview of their administrative role, what they are looking forward to this term, a useful tip for students, and a highlight from their summer!

From Department Chair, Logan McLeod

As I begin my third term as Chair of the Lazaridis Economics Department (LED), I look forward to the opportunity to continue working with our local community of economists: the faculty, staff, and students who make our economics community great.

What am I most looking forward to this term?  Meeting the 250 students who are taking my EC270 course. As I like to say: we will have a lot of fun in EC270 (conditional on learning microeconomic theory).

My tip for all students (not just my EC270 students): remember life is a journey, not a destination. In your time at Laurier, embrace the daily process of learning and not just the end point of receiving your degree. The daily process of learning requires you embrace growth, make mistakes, and tackle challenges. Most importantly, avoid burnout. If you are just focused on the end point of receiving your degree, this can cause more stress while you miss the being present in the moment.

One highlight of the summer was taking my daughters to see Chris Stapleton live at Rogers Stadium. We were fortunate the weather was perfect for the outdoor concert. Even more fortunate, was the surprise appearance of Slash and Duff McKagan (from Guns N’ Roses) who performed Patience with Chris. If you do not know Guns N’ Roses or their song Patience (as my daughters kindly pointed out when they asked what this “old person” music was), you should: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuuTb4AWdwU&t=13s

From Associate Chair, Wendy Wu

As Associate Chair, I have a range of administrative responsibilities. I lead the Department’s Assurance of Learning (AOL) process for our undergraduate and MABE programs, help develop and expand the Department’s file-management and data-repository systems, and chair the Economics Student Awards Committee. I also step in for the Chair when needed.

I look forward to working with students in EC481 and EC681 as they develop their research projects. I enjoy the dynamic learning process and find it inspiring to support students as their ideas take shape.

My tip? Begin each day with gratitude and treat it as the first day of the rest of your life. Every day offers a fresh start. Instead of regretting the past or worrying about tomorrow, focus on making the most of today and living in the present.

The photo I am sharing was from one of my favourite hikes in the Montserrat mountains in Spain. Hiking is one of my favourite hobbies, and Montserrat is especially memorable for its striking rock formations, breathtaking views, and rich cultural and spiritual history.

From Graduate Program Director, Christos Shiamptanis

As Director of our Graduate Program, I have the privilege of supporting our master's students from the moment they consider applying to the day they graduate and beyond. My role includes supporting information sessions, reviewing applications, conducting interviews and welcoming students to the program. Once they arrive, I work alongside faculty and staff to help guide their academic journey by overseeing Graduate Teaching Assistant assignments, advising on electives and connecting them with resources that support their academic success, well-being and career goals.

I look forward to seeing how much our graduate students grow during their time in our program. It is inspiring to watch them evolve into confident economists, analysts, researchers and leaders equipped with the skills to make an impact. Seeing that transformation firsthand is the best part of the job and a reminder of why we do what we do.

My tip? Graduate school is not a solo sport. Build connections with peers, faculty and staff. Your network can provide support, advice and the occasional much-needed coffee break.

I am sharing a snapshot to an unforgettable FIFA World Cup knockout match where Canada’s men’s team advanced to the Round of 16 for the first time in history. The atmosphere was electric, the celebrations were unforgettable and Canadian soccer fans were on cloud nine. And for one glorious evening, the nation stopped talking about hockey.

From Undergraduate Program Director, Hideki Ariizumi

As an undergraduate program director, my main role is to oversee our undergraduate program. Our program is well-established and well-structured, and so most of our students can navigate themselves throughout the program. If not, we have a team of advisors who can assist students.

Since July, I have been working with people in the Lazaridis Undergraduate Office. I am lucky to have those people, and I already know that we have a great team. So, I am excited working with them throughout the term.

A general tip for students is “come to class,” and to try to get interested in whatever you are doing. Even if you are not interested in the topic initially, try to find something you get excited or inspired in it. Economics offers great tools to see a variety of interesting topics.

During this summer, our family went to Japan. The first picture is Tokyo Skytree, a TV tower built in 2012. On one day in August, we were in Toronto. Another picture is of course, the CN Tower. As you may notice, none of our family members cares about going up the towers.

From LCERPA Director, Jeff Chan

This will be my third year as the director of the Laurier Centre for Economic Research & Policy Analysis (LCERPA).

LCERPA's signature annual event, Economic Outlook, is next being held in Winter 2027 but we're already hard at work putting things together to ensure that it's going to be a great show. We're not ready to reveal the theme for this coming year yet but rest assured that it will be a crowd pleaser and has been a highly requested topic! 

More broadly, LCERPA will continue to work behind the scenes to support the research and outreach activities of the department. We've already funded our first grant of the academic year and there will be more to come for sure. My goal in providing this kind of support, as in past years, is to make it easier for faculty to continue doing the kind of research and organizing the types of events that make Laurier's economics department such a dynamic and engaging academic environment. 

This past August I presented my research in Yellowknife (pictured below) at the Canadian Network for Economic History/Indigenous Economics Study Group joint meeting.  

Did you know Laurier’s economics department has a newsletter that you can subscribe to? Sign up at: https://bit.ly/lednewsletter . You can check out all of our articles hot off the presses as they come out on the site (accessed through the link) as well!