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Article: Louisiana Tech University students do research on timely business questions, defend findings

Feb 25, 2025 | Business, Impact

Note: This article was published in the Shreveport-Bossier City Advocate on Feb. 25, 2025.
Written by Liz Swaine

Louisiana Tech’s Dr. Patrick Scott, an associate professor of Economics in the College of Business, gave his students the smallest bit of direction. For his original economic analysis class, “I made them pick a Louisiana topic.” He told his research methods class “the sky’s the limit.”

That the group was asked to present their findings to any and all in the lobby of the College of Business on a frigid winter morning was simple. Professors are aware that Artificial Intelligence can write college papers, so Scott wanted to help students by compelling them to research and then explain a topic. Most of the students chose a business-related question.

“So they come in, they get their hands dirty with it, with an actual problem that they need to solve. They go through all the existential crises necessary to actually work through a problem that they’re not familiar with. They have all those moments of self-doubt, but they ultimately come back on the other end, learning something, not only about the topic, but also about themselves and how to take a project from beginning to end.”

“They come out with something in hand that they can say, ‘I did this.’ And I think the ability just to show our work has got to be one of the most important things that our current generation of students is needing right now.”

The students spent ten weeks on their question and the answer or answers to it. 40% of their class grade will depend on it.

The topics ran the gamut- How Tariffs Shape Growth and Inequality, Monetary Policy and Small Banks: Analyzing Interest Rate Effects in Louisiana, how truck transport helps in Driving Louisiana’s Economy, The Myth that Productivity Reduces Inequality.

It is a science fair on “steroids” says Scott, a combination of art, communication, writing and analysis skills.

Graduate student Casey Henry was deep in conversation with economics professor Dr. Nono Gueye about fiscal policies, human capital and the wealth gap.

“One of the reasons why we study economics is to understand how the world works. I mean, this is true for the whole of science, basically, but economics specifically, we want to understand, you know, interactions between people, interactions between industries, why people behave the way they do.”

“If a policymaker came in here and said, ‘what kind of insight can I go back to my office with to change something in the economy’ what would you say?” asked Gueye.

“The tax policy might need to be revisited,” Henry responded. “You want to tax the rich more, but not so much that you discourage the rich from making new investments, opening new businesses and stuff like that, because if you take too much of their wealth to redistribute to the poor, they’re going to move their wealth elsewhere.” “I would encourage him (the policymaker) to try to find more balance on that, the sweet spot.”

Henry said his analysis found that investment in human capital and technology is a driver in reducing inequality and driving growth and that redirecting education dollars to “grassroots education” that include skills and development training, provide short-, medium- and long-term benefits.

Similar conversations were being held around the lobby. Anna Griffin, a graduate student from Shreveport, became interested in tariffs during the presidential election. She compiled data showing how companies pass the cost of tariffs to consumers.

One example was of a trade agreement in which Alabama sent chicken products to China in return for tires and steel for Alabama’s automotive industry.

“It was interesting to see the impact of how this played out, especially during the trade war in 2018, because it ended up not only hurting some people in China, but also ended up significantly hurting people in Alabama who work in these manufacturing towns, because not only were they having to pay more to ship things there, but also they were receiving less than they normally would, so that they could manufacture less.”

Back at Casey Henry’s board, he and Dr. Gueye are deep in conversation about how quickly AI will have an impact on income inequality.

“I think that inequality is going to be widened, not in the short term, though,” said Gueye. “In a short time everybody can do everything because of AI, but in a long time when the limitations of AI start being more apparent, then you’re going to have inequality between those who have taken the time to learn, to study, to acquire the skills, and those who just rely on AI to get to where they are. And then the inequalities will increase.”

Henry disagreed. “I think it’s going to happen a lot sooner than the long term. So I agree that the gap between rich and poor because of AI will widen, but I don’t think it’s going to take as long as you might think it will take in terms of AI.”

“It’s definitely going to drive some polarization in our societies, but the people who can use it well are going to earn a lot more, and the people who don’t know how to really use It will not benefit significantly, thereby widening the gap.”

The conversation, the explanations, the defense of their findings are all part of the plan, says Scott. “Ultimately, they have to pick up that torch and carry it along the way and be self-sufficient.” “I can only help them get so far.”