the former directors here know well, every program is a startup when it moves from one university to another. while we started with a detailed plan for all five years, we did not know how everything would turn out and had to be open to experimentation and innovation. after the first year, it became obvious that the program needed a systematic advising component. armed with this intensive training in economics, the students still needed help planning next steps back at their home institutions and for the future. the second year, we instituted a mandatory advising session with a faculty administrator on the last day of the program. the students completed a survey with their educational objectives for the next two to three years, and we commented on them. this became a critical and 1 / 3 bis - central bankers'speeches ongoing souvenir of the program. it has been heartwarming to see program alumni stick to these plans and execute them many years after leaving the aeasp. during the second year, we also realized how important machine learning was becoming to conducting research and to preparing for graduate study in economics. one august, after the program was over, we enrolled in a machine learning short course, learned more about the power of these tools, and incorporated it into the program the next summer. humility, agility, and being open to new ideas held us in good stead throughout the program in east lansing. second, outreach and recruiting efforts are very important. my own journey and that of many others are evidence that not everyone comes to the field of economics the same way. in our experience, it was helpful to find novel ways to broaden our reach. in addition to traditional outreach methods, we engaged social media, including going to where economists were - econtwitter - to introduce economics departments and interested students to the new program at msu, to provide general information, and to give updates on students, program activities, and alumni. there were several memorable social media events : two live social media sessions on different platforms, the instagram photo contest, and the " selfies with sue " [ dynarski ] sessions during our excursion to detroit and ann arbor. successful execution of a social - media strategy resulted in a more diverse applicant pool by type of educational institution and geographical location. third, anyone can be a mentor and influence the trajectory of a student or young scholar interested in economics. students spontaneously became peer mentors to each other, using time they could have used to do their own problem sets or study for

, charles schultze, george borts, and all of the other founders and early supporters of the program for their vision and to the national economic association and all those who have contributed to advocating for and executing this vision over the years. with great pride for its past achievements, i look forward to seeing the program's legacy embodied in the future endeavors of each of its participants. best of luck over the next 50 years! 1 the views expressed here are my own and are not necessarily those of my colleagues on the federal reserve board or the federal open market committee. 3 / 3 bis - central bankers'speeches