Gerard “Jerry” Caprio, Class of 1972

Historians don’t have a monopoly (no pun intended) on the dictum about remembering the past or repeating it. Economists must remember, too.

And students are amazed at your encyclopedic recall of centuries of economic catastrophe … along with the attendant lessons for today’s policymakers.

Dot com collapse? A bubble in Bitcoin? Here, you’d point out, is what we might do, based, perhaps, on what we know from the 17th century Dutch Tulip Mania.

Historical insight and policy perspective help to explain why your courses are so popular. Also part of the magic: your field-leading research on bank regulation. Your focus on analytical and communication skills. Your sense of humor, and genuine interest in students’ lives and careers.

You returned to your alma mater in 2006 after a long career in senior positions at the World Bank and other key institutions. As chair of the Center for Development Economics, you broadened the curriculum and built a significant endowment. You ensured that the center had the means to admit the most promising students from the neediest nations. You recruited stellar faculty members, nurtured a vibrant intellectual atmosphere and immeasurably improved CDE facilities.

CDE graduates, now in 110 countries, may not have all the answers. Because of you, however, they know how to ask the right questions.
And what to do next.

We’re pleased you’ll continue teaching at the CDE, where, thanks to another of your campaigns for excellence, they finally have a coffee maker that brews to your exacting standards.

I hereby declare you the William Brough Professor of Economics, Emeritus, entitled to all the rights, honors, and privileges appertaining thereto.

June 5, 2022