Sweet Briar announces two new faculty hires in economics

Sweet Briar College has announced the hire of two new faculty members: Assistant Professor of Economics August Hardy and Assistant Professor of Economics and Leadership Daniel Lee. Both will start on July 1.


August Hardy


August Hardy comes to Sweet Briar from George Mason University, where he completed his master’s and Ph.D. in economics. His dissertation focused on “Rationality on the Fringes.” He earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Virginia. Hardy’s research and teaching focus primarily on applied microeconomics and political economy, with a secondary interest in industrial organization. Specifically, his recent research has focused on the application of price theory to non-market interactions.

“I am interested in the ways in which the interactions between individuals create emergent institutions to sustain exchange and increase welfare,” he explains. “By viewing human behavior as fundamentally purposive and recalling the extraordinary value of markets as a discovery process, economics sheds light on things once thought mysterious. With this foundation, my research seeks to illuminate and explore the determinants of human behavior where others do not look.”

At GMU, Hardy has taught such courses as Introductory and Intermediate Microeconomics, Public Choice, Money and Banking and International Economic Policy.


Daniel Lee


Daniel Lee recently completed a postdoctoral fellowship in entrepreneurship and innovation at Rice University, where he put his training as a behavioral and experimental economist to the test in the applied environment of a business school. Lee holds a Ph.D. and a master’s in economics from Georgia State University and a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics and economics from Emory University.

As a teaching assistant and guest lecturer at Georgia State University, Lee taught a variety of courses, including The Global Economy and Microeconomics. He looks forward to Sweet Briar’s innovative liberal arts environment and to collaborations with the business program.

For more information, contact the dean’s office at 434-381-6205 or deansoffice@sbc.edu.