Alma Bezares Calderón joins at Whittier as assistant professor of economics.
Bezarez Calderón earned her Ph.D. in economics and politics at Claremont Graduate University. She also holds M.S. degrees in economics and international studies, respectively, from Claremont Graduate University and from the University of Montréal in Canada. Bezares Calderón earned a B.S. in International Business at the Monterrey Institute of Technology in Mexico.
While completing her doctorate, she also taught at Pomona College, Occidental College, CSU San Bernardino, and Claremont Graduate University.
Bezares Calderón’s research focuses on understanding the impact of institutions and policies on economic development in resource-constrained areas. She has engaged in field research while working with the World Bank on rural development and the effects of aspirations on poverty and program uptake in Senegal and the effects of decentralization in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Bezares Calderón seeks to bring economics and politics together to answer crucial questions and provide sound empirical evidence that facilitates the implementation of adequate policies in the developing world.
At Whittier, Bezares Calderón will teach courses such as Political Economy of Development, Comparative Economic Systems, and a JanTerm course called Unthinking Migration.
