Jill McCluskey, director of the School of Economics at Washington State University, has been selected to lead the International Association of Agricultural Economists. She will be only the second woman to lead the association in its 95-year history. Dr. McClusky will become the organization’s first American president in 30 years. Dr. McCluskey will serve as president-elect for three years, followed by a three-year term as president beginning in 2027.
Dr. McCluskey has been a Washington State University faculty member for nearly three decades. Throughout her long tenure, she has held several leadership roles including chair of graduate studies and associate director for the School of Economics. In 2019, she was promoted to director of the School of Economics, making her the first woman to serve in the position. A full professor since 2007, she held the title of Distinguished Professor of Sustainability for four years, and has been a Regents Professor for the past five years.
As a scholar, Dr. McCluskey’s research focuses on applied industrial organization, nutrition and food safety, food and agricultural technology, and environmental economics. She has published numerous articles, book chapters, and books, including The Economics of Reputation (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2017) and New Technology and Conflicting Information: Assessing Consumers’ Willingness to Pay for New Foods (World Scientific Publishing Co., 2021).
Dr. McCluskey received her bachelor’s degree in business economics and political science from the University of California, Santa Barbara and her master’s degree in economics from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. She holds a second master’s degree and a Ph.D. in agricultural and resource economics from the University of California, Berkeley.