By Katie Frey
MSU Department of Economics selected Jay Stansberry as their 2023 Outstanding Student. In addition to his selection, he received the MSU Board of Trustees 4.0 Award and MSU Economics' Edward A. and Eleanor B. Carlin Award in recognition of distinguished academic achievement.
Stansberry chose MSU because he comes from a Spartan family with both his father and brother graduating from MSU.
"I chose economics because it was one of my favorite high school classes and I love the logical approach of the topic," he shared.
When asked about some of his favorite experiences, Stansberry shared that he enjoyed the Econ Scholars trip to Chicago to learn about economics and the chance to connect with his classmates.
"I also enjoyed my econometrics classes, especially getting food with Professor Vogelsang," he said.
Professor Vogelsang spoke about Stansberry during the senior award ceremony where awarded seniors and families celebrated.
"You got to understand Jay, he's very quiet, serious, steady and smart," Professor Vogelsang said. "This year, he decided to take the first year PhD sequence in econometrics and not many undergrads do this. He did well in the fall and then he has been in my course this spring, and you're holding your own with those PhD students! You should be very proud of that! Jay has a very bright future, he's just a really wonderful person, he’s a super hard worker. Congratulations and I look forward to seeing what you do!"
During his time at MSU, Stansberry was a research assistant and appreciated his opportunities to study the relationship between education and marriage across time and continents using Stata for Professor Hanzhe Zhang; and to study the impact of diversity statements on student responses for Professor Amanda Chuan.
Additionally, some of his favorite memories surround attending almost every game and being a member of the Spartan football student section, Izzone and Munnsters.
In the future, Stansberry hopes to begin his career closer to home.
"I'm Looking for a position in data analytics and finance back home in the Detroit area, with an eye on continuing my education in the future," he said.