Illinois State University economics students attended the 2025 Midwest Economics Association (MEA) Annual Conference in Kansas City, Missouri, March 21-23, joining hundreds of economists from across the country and overseas for three days of academic exchange, research presentations, and professional networking.

The trip was led by Professor of Economics Susan Chen, who served this year as the second vice president of the MEA—a leadership role that marked a milestone in her professional career. As part of her duties, Dr. Chen oversaw the conference’s Undergraduate Research Competition, a central feature of the MEA’s commitment to student engagement.

“This year’s MEA was especially meaningful for me,” Chen said. “It allowed me to support and highlight undergraduate research while also helping ISU students connect with the broader economics community. It also enhanced the reputation of ISU across the Midwest and beyond.”

Throughout the conference, students attended various sessions on labor, development, public economics, and health economics. They all attended the undergraduate sessions, and many engaged in poster sessions during the Undergraduate Social to interact with peers from other institutions. The experience gave students a firsthand look at what economists are currently researching and sparked inspiration across the group.

Garrett Allar, a junior economics major, reflected on the breadth of topics at the conference, noting how economics touches everything from education and gender to labor and health. He said that while the diversity of topics could seem overwhelming, it ultimately made the field even more exciting to explore.

Parker Langfeldt, also a junior economics major, attended MEA for the second year and presented his own research, “The Price-Passover Effect of an Increase in the Tipped Minimum Wage on Major Metropolitan Statistical Areas,” under the supervision of Associate Professor of Economics, German Blanco. Langfeldt shared that the MEA “taught me so much about research” and gave him a clear picture of various research professional economists engage in. He said he would “recommend the trip to anyone interested in economics and economic research.”

First-year graduate student Jacob Vander Weele found the variety of topics and methods presented to be highly relevant to his own research. “Seeing an array of topics using the methods—and expansion of methods—I’m using in my own research was incredibly useful,” Vander Weele said.

Anyiah Montgomery, a junior managerial economics major attending the MEA for the second time, emphasized how powerful it was to engage with economists from across the country. “The conference probably reaffirmed the significance of representation in economics,” Montgomery said, adding that it helped her sharpen both her analytical and critical thinking skills.

Chen expressed appreciation for the university’s continued support in making the trip possible. “Students benefit tremendously from attending these conferences,” Chen said. “We will continue to make this an annual tradition so our students have the opportunity to grow as researchers and future economists.”