Rhonda Vonshay Sharpe facts for kids
Rhonda Vonshay Sharpe (born in 1966) is an American economist. She is the founder and current president of the Women's Institute for Science, Equity, and Race (WISER). Dr. Sharpe is known as a feminist economist, which means she studies how economic issues affect women and different groups of people. She has taught at many universities and was the president of the National Economic Association from 2017 to 2018.
Quick facts for kids
Rhonda Vonshay Sharpe
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| Born | 1966 |
| Nationality | American |
| Institution | Women's Institute for Science, Equity and Race (WISER) Bennett College |
| Field | Feminist Economics |
| Alma mater | North Carolina Wesleyan College, B.A., Mathematics Clark Atlanta University, M.A., Applied Mathematics Stanford University, M.S., Operations Research Claremont Graduate University, M.A., PhD., Economics |
| Doctoral advisor |
Cecilia Conrad |
| Influences | William A. Darity Jr. Cecilia Conrad |
| Awards | Rhonda Williams Prize (2004) |
Early Life and Education
Rhonda Sharpe was born in New York in 1966. She moved to Virginia with her parents when she was young. She went to Highland Springs High School.
Dr. Sharpe studied mathematics at North Carolina Wesleyan College and Clark Atlanta University. She also studied operations research at Stanford University. Operations research is about using math to solve problems and make decisions. She earned her PhD in economics from Claremont Graduate University in 1998. Her main teacher there was Cecilia Conrad.
Career and Contributions
Dr. Sharpe has taught at several colleges and universities. These include Barnard College, Bennett College, Columbia University, and Duke University. From 2009 to 2012, she led the Department of Business and Economics at Bennett College.
In 2016, on International Women's Day, Dr. Sharpe started the Women's Institute for Science, Equity, and Race (WISER). WISER is a research group that does not make a profit and does not support any political party. It focuses on studying how economic and social issues affect Asian, Black, Hispanic, and Native American women.
A key part of WISER's work is looking at data separately for different groups of women. This helps to understand their unique experiences and challenges. Dr. Sharpe believes it's important to see how different groups are affected by policies and economic changes.
Dr. Sharpe also served as the president of the National Economic Association from 2017 to 2018. She is on the board of the International Association for Feminist Economics. She also helps edit The Review of Black Political Economy, which is a journal about economic issues affecting Black communities.
