Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Economics records
Scope and Contents of the Collection
Most of the records were created while Robert Lyle Bishop (1958-1964) and Edgar Cary Brown (1964-1982) were heads of the department. The collection contains correspondence, plans, reports, and studies on affirmative action; and information about department committees, changes in the graduate and undergraduate curricula, and visiting committees. Included is a department history with lists of all faculty and student evaluations of courses. Also included is Brown's correspondence with the American Economic Association's Chairs Committee. Working papers published by the department, 1967-2014, were added to the collection in 2020.
Dates
- 1947
Creator
Access note
This collection must be reviewed to identify any restricted material before access can be granted. Please submit your requests at least ten business days before your desired visit to allow time for this review. An archivist will respond within five business days to let you know whether your requested material is open. For complete information on this policy, see our Statement on Accessing Institute Records.
Conditions Governing Use
Access to collections in the Department of Distinctive Collections is not authorization to publish. Please see the MIT Libraries Permissions Policy for permission information. Copyright of some items in this collection may be held by respective creators, not by the donor of the collection or MIT.
Historical note
Until 1903, classes in economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology were taught as part of Course IX, General Studies. In 1903 the Department of Economics, Statistics and Political Science was established; in 1907 it became the Department of Economics and Statistics, and Political Science became part of the Department of History and Political Science. In 1934 the Department of Economics and Statistics became the Department of Economics and Social Science, and in 1965 it became the Department of Economics.
Heads of the Program and Department
- 1893–1933
- Davis R. Dewey
- 1933–1958
- Ralph Evans Freeman
- 1958–1964
- Robert Lyle Bishop
- 1964–1982
- E. Cary Brown
- 1983–1984
- Ann F. Friedlaender
- 1984
- E. Cary Brown, Acting Head
- 1985–1987
- Peter Arthur Diamond
- 1987–1990
- Richard Samuel Eckaus
- 1990–1993
- Peter Temin
- 1993–1994
- Stanley Fischer
- 1994–1998
- Paul Joskow
- 1998–2003
- Olivier Blanchard
- 2003–2006
- Bengt Holmstrom
- 2006–2008
- James Poterba
- 2008–2011
- Ricardo J. Caballero
- 2011–2016
- Whitney Newey
- 2016–2017
- Glenn Ellison
- 2017–2020
- Glenn Ellison
- 2020–
- Glenn Ellison
Extent
19.3 Cubic Feet (4 record cartons, 51 manuscript boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Location
Materials are stored off-site. Advance notice is required for use.
Processing Information note
Some collection descriptions are based on legacy data and may be incomplete or contain inaccuracies. Description may change pending verification. Please contact the MIT Department of Distinctive Collections if you notice any errors or discrepancies.
- Bishop, Robert L.
- Brown, E. Cary (Edgar Cary)
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology -- History Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Economics
- Minorities -- Education (Higher) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Students -- Political activity. Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- academic affairs Subject Source: Thesaurus for Use in College and University Archives
- academic departments Subject Source: Thesaurus for Use in College and University Archives
- administration of employees Subject Source: Thesaurus for Use in College and University Archives
- administration of students Subject Source: Thesaurus for Use in College and University Archives
- affirmative action Subject Source: Thesaurus for Use in College and University Archives
Creator
- Title
- Preliminary Inventory to the Records of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Department of Economics
- Status
- Ready For Review
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Libraries. Department of Distinctive Collections Repository
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Libraries
Building 14N-118
77 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge MA 02139-4307 US
distinctive-collections@mit.edu