In Memoriam: David Colander
David Colander, Christian A. Johnson Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Economics, died on December 4, 2023. He was 76 years old. During his 40-year career at Middlebury, Colander established himself as a world-renowned economist known for his passion for teaching, his mentoring of countless students and faculty members, and his best-selling textbooks in the field of economics.
“What struck me about David was that he wanted to make the Economics Department at Middlebury one of the best undergraduate departments in the country,” said Sunder Ramaswamy, Distinguished College Professor of International Economics and director of international and global studies, who worked with Colander for 15 years. “I loved that vision as a young faculty member. David was one of the main reasons I came to Middlebury and stayed on. A larger-than-life personality intellectually and academically, he was a prolific writer whose books are still used all over the world.”
Born in 1947 in Jamestown, New York, where he grew up, Colander arrived at Middlebury in 1982 as the Christian A. Johnson Distinguished Visiting Professor of Economics shortly after receiving his PhD in economics from Columbia University. He established himself as a highly productive writer and impactful teacher with a reputation for challenging students and faculty members.
“David was a thought leader in the economics profession and a valued mentor and friend in the department,” said Jessica Holmes, professor of economics. “His breadth of knowledge, intellectual curiosity, and willingness to turn a critical eye on the discipline pushed his students, his colleagues, and the entire profession forward. His textbooks trained countless undergraduate students in the economic way of thinking.”
Colander served as chair of the Economics Department from 2002 to 2005 and 2006 to 2012 and received the Distinguished College Professor title in 2013. He served as vice president and president of the Eastern Economic Association and vice president of the History of Economic Thought Society. He was also on the editorial boards of the Journal of the History of Economic Thought, Eastern Economic Journal, and Journal of Economic Perspectives.
Jon Isham, professor of economics and environmental studies, called Colander “a fierce champion of the economic way of thinking” and “a leader in the profession.”
Colander authored, coauthored, or edited 40 books and more than 100 articles, including Principles of Economics (McGraw-Hill); History of Economic Thought (Houghton Mifflin); Macroeconomics (Prentice Hall); Why Aren’t Economists as Important as Garbagemen? (Sharpe); and MAP: A Market Anti-Inflation Plan (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich). His books have been translated into multiple languages including Bulgarian, Polish, Italian, Spanish, and Chinese.
Colander also taught at Columbia University, Vassar College, the University of Miami, and Princeton University and was a consultant to Time-Life Films and the U.S. Congress. He served as Brookings Policy Fellow and a Visiting Scholar at Nuffield College, Oxford. His later work focused on economic education, complexity, and the methodology appropriate to applied policy economics.
Phani Wunnava, David K. Smith ‘42 Chair in Applied Economics, was a student of Colander’s at the University of Miami, where he was also Colander’s teaching and research assistant in the early 1980s. “Ever since, he became my guiding star and an outstanding mentor in my pursuit of a career in academia,” said Wunnava. “The high point of my career was to join Dave as a colleague in the Economics Department at Middlebury.”
In 2013, Colander and then Middlebury President Ron Liebowitz developed the Professors of the Practice (“PoP”) program to provide students a “liberal arts plus” education. Colander remained head of the program until his retirement in 2022 when Tim Nguyen, professor of business and finance, and academic director of the Professors of the Practice program, took over.
Amy Holbrook, academic coordinator in the Economics Department, says Colander was a strong supporter of staff members. “It was under David’s leadership as department chair that I had substantial growth professionally. I will be forever grateful for the opportunities that he provided and his confidence in my abilities.”
Ramaswamy said Colander made it a point to invite famous economists and Nobel laureates to come to Middlebury to give talks. He also hired students like Umar Serajuddin ’96 to work during the summer if they couldn’t afford to return home between semesters.
“I came from Bangladesh and we didn’t have much money,” said Serajuddin, now a manager at the World Bank. “He paid me $10 an hour, which was a lot at the time, but what I remember most is how he treated me like a member of his family. He became like a father figure to me. I dedicated my thesis dissertation to him and my dad. When I told David, he said, ‘You know I don’t deserve it, but I’ll cherish it.’”
Jimmy Xu ’00 recalls Colander as a tough but compassionate teacher willing to step up and help students in need. He vividly recalls Colander’s response to a comment he made during their first meeting about how expensive textbooks were.
“Before I could even finish my sentence, he handed me an $85 personal check. I was floored by this unexpected act of generosity and how completely unassuming he was about it. Later, I had the privilege of spending time with him and his family. The way he led his life as a teacher, mentor, friend, husband, and father exemplified the same sincerity and generosity of spirit that I saw in his office that day. I can only aspire to live my own life with the same level of commitment to giving for the welfare of those around us.”