Alujjage Pasan Samaranayake part of winning UW-Whitewater College Fed Challenge Team

2017 Nov 22

Alujjage Pasan Samaranayake from Gonapola Junction, Sri Lanka, majoring in economics and computer science, contributed to a first-ever win by the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater economics team at the College Fed Challenge competition in Chicago, Illinois, on Nov. 13, 2017.

UW-Whitewater edged out Northwestern University, the University of Chicago and Marquette University to earn first place and the right to advance to the national level. They will face-off against Harvard University, Virginia Commonwealth University, and Pace University before the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in Washington, D.C. on Dec. 1.

The College Fed Challenge is an academic competition designed to bring real-world economics into the classroom. Teams analyze economic and financial conditions, and determine how they may impact monetary policy.

As a non-presenting team member, Samaranayake's contributions to the research and presentation development were vital to the team's preparation and success.

"The students have to be informed of economic conditions right up to the day of the competition," Professor of Economics Yamin Ahmad said. "They use indicators like consumer confidence, inflation, unemployment, and gross domestic product to determine how different sectors are performing and how the Federal Reserve might react."

The regional event was the culmination of more than six months of preparation and practice. The challenge helps build students' macroeconomic knowledge, as well as teamwork, critical thinking, and public speaking skills.