Handbook for Chapter Advisors

Omicron Delta Epsilon is the International Economics Honor Society. The following are the most important objectives of Omicron Delta Epsilon:

• first and foremost is the recognition of scholastic attainment in economics;
  
  
• second is the recognition of outstanding achievements in economics on the part of economists at all levels;
  
  
• third is the establishment of closer ties between students and faculty in economics within their own colleges and universities;
  
  
• fourth is the establishment of closer ties between students and faculty in economics on all campuses;
  
  
• fifth is the publication of an official journal;
  
  
• and sixth is the emphasize the professional aspects of economics as a career field for service in the academic world, business, government, and international organizations.

Table of Contents

The Philosophy of Omicron Delta Epsilon
The History of Omicron Delta Epsilon
Organizational Structure
Fees and Dues
The Biennial Convention
The American Economist
Graduate Student Paper Sessions
Awards
• John R. Commons Award
• The Irving Fisher Article Award
• The Frank W. Taussig Article Award
• Outstanding Student Awards
Newsletter
Eligibility for Membership
Chapter Organization
Chapter Activities
Chapter Advisors
Central Office

The Philosophy of Omicron Delta Epsilon

Omicron Delta Epsilon is dedicated to the encouragement of excellence in economics. It encourages devotion on the part of its members as economists to the advancement of their science and to the scholarly effort to make freedom from want and deprivation a reality for all mankind.

The History of Omicron Delta Epsilon

Omicron Delta Epsilon, one of the largest academic honor societies, was established in 1963 as a result of a merger of two honor societies: Omicron Delta Gamma (founded in 1915 by Professor John R. Commons at the University of Wisconsin and Frank W. Taussig at Harvard University); and Omicron Chi Epsilon (founded in 1956 by Prof. Alan A. Brown when he was a student at the City College of New York). It became an International Honor Society in Economics in 1969. Since that time, a number of chapters throughout the world have been added. Also see...

Organizational Structure

Omicron Delta Epsilon is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies in the United States, and thus fully recognized and accredited.

It is governed by an International Executive Board consisting of the International President, the President-Elect, two or more Vice-Presidents, the Executive Secretary-Treasurer, the Editor-in Chief of The American Economist, the Editor of the Fisher/Taussig Competitions and the Chair and Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees. The International Board of Trustees consists of outstanding economists both in the U.S. and in other countries who are elected at the ODE Biennial Convention.

The International Executive Board is the operative governing body of the society. It meets at least once a year to set policy, approve new chapters (which may be approved by mail ballot in the interim), approve recommendations for the appointment of the regional representatives, recommend requested changes in the constitution, and take action on appropriate matters and issues in the accordance with the provisions of the constitution.

Fees and Dues

An international initiation fee, currently (2009) $32.00, is paid by each prospective member of Omicron Delta Epsilon upon his/her election to membership in the Honor Society. In return, he/she receives a membership scroll and a one year subscription (2 issues) to The American Economist. The purchase of the official key or pin by the initiates is optional but encouraged. There are no annual international dues. Current (2009) Journal subscriptions are $10.00 for students per annum, or $25.00 per year or $50.00 for three years. Back issues of the Journal are available at $15.00 each and life memberships are $150.00.

The Biennial Convention

Once every two years, In conjunction with the meetings of the Allied Social Sciences Associations (ASSA), the Society convenes at the meeting place where th ASSA is holding its meetings. At these conventions, the John R. Commons Award recipient delivers a paper, which is then followed by the biennial business meeting of the Society. Delegates of the Chapters to the biennial convention constitute the highest governing and legislative body of the Society. At the conventions, the President-Elect becomes the International President and the authorized delegates elect the President-Elect, Vice Presidents by majority vote.

The American Economist

The American Economist, is the journal of Omicron Delta Epsilon. Its purposes are twofold: first, to provide an outlet for essays and papers written by graduate and undergraduate students of a nature not normally solicited by existing professional journals but of sufficient interest and merit to warrant publication; and second, to provide a means of acquainting economists and undergraduates contemplating a career in economics with current developments in pure and applied economics. The American Economist periodically publishes a set of course reading lists for major universities, covering different fields of economics and abstracts of doctoral dissertations in the same field, in addition to articles and other features of interest.

The Editors of The American Economist are assisted in their work by a prominent Editorial Board.

Graduate Student Paper Sessions

Each year, Omicron Delta Epsilon sponsors a Graduate Economics Session consisting of graduate students' papers, selected on a competitive basis. Members of ODE, who present papers are awarded a travel stipend of $400 and discussant are awarded a travel stipend of $300. The papers are presented at the annual meeting of the American Economic Association (Allied Social Sciences meetings). The next meeting is in Atlanta, January 3-5, 2010.

Similarly, Regional Graduate Student Paper Sessions are sponsored by the ODE Regional Representatives at the meetings of various regional economics associations. These students are also awarded travel stipends.

Awards

To implement its objectives, Omicron Delta Epsilon sponsors the John R. Commons Award and two international competitive awards, the Irving Fisher Award and the Frank Taussig Award for ODE members, graduate and undergraduate students, respectively. Also, each year there is recognition for acting leadership roles in local chapters in the Outstanding Student Awards. Chapters can apply for grants of up to $1000 for innovative programs.

The John R. Commons Award, established in memory of one of the founders of Omicron Delta Epsilon, is awarded biennially to an outstanding economist in recognition of his achievements and for his service both to economics profession and to Omicron Delta Epsilon.

Previous recipients of this award have been: Professor Evsey D. Domar of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1965; Professor Arthur Smithies of Harvard University, 1967; Professor Gerhard Tintner of the University of Southern California, 1969; Professor Milton Friedman of the University of Chicago, 1971, Professor Kenneth J. Arrow of Harvard University, 1973; Professor Robert Solow of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1975; Professor William S. Baumol of Princeton and New York Universities, 1977; Professor Abram Bergson of Harvard University, 1979; Professor Arnold Zellner of the University of Chicago, 1981; Professor Dale Jorgenson of Harvard University, 1983; Professor Kenneth E. Boulding of the University of Colorado, 1985; Professor Gary Beckner of the University of Chicago, 1987; Professor Martin Feldstein of the National Bureau of Economics Research, 1989;Professor Douglass C. North, Washington University,1991;Professor Robert Eisner, Northwestern University, 1993; Professor Jagdish Bhagwatii,Columbia University, 1995; Professor Walter Adams, Trinity University(Texas) and Michigan State University, 1997; Professor Paul A. Samuelson, Massacchusetts Institute if Technology, 1999; and Professor Victor R. Fuchs, Stanford, University, 2001: Irma Adelman, University of California, Berkeley, 2003; Benjamin Friedman, Harvard University, 2005.

The Irving Fisher Article Award is bestowed upon the best article submitted by a graduate student or a recent recipient of a doctorate in economics.

Who is Eligible - Members of Omicron Delta Epsilon who are graduate students or have received their Ph.D. or terminal M.A. not more than two years prior to entering the competition.

Eligible Entries - Articles may be on any topic in economics. They must be based on work initiated prior to receipt of Ph.D. Entries of up to 5,000 words are preferred, but up to 10,000 words are acceptable.

Nature of Award - The Irving Fisher Award consists of a cash prize of $1500, and publication in The American Economist (at the option of the winner).

Procedure for Participation - Submit three copies of your entry to the Selection Committee in the Department that granted you the degree. If no Committee exists in your Department, submit three copies of your entry with supporting letters from two faculty members to the Chairman of the Fisher/Taussig Competitions.

Deadline - An announcement is sent out to each chapter each year specifying the deadlines for submission.

Selection Process - One or more entries judged to be of superior quality in department competitions will be forwarded to the International Editorial Board. All entries judged to be of superior quality by this Board will be entered in the final competition and will be judged by the Final Selection Board.

Award Announcement - The announcement of the award is made approximately May 1 of each year.

More Information - For more information, write Dr. Charles F. Phillips, Jr., Editor Fisher/Taussig Competitions, Washington & Lee University, Lexington, VA 24450.

The Frank W. Taussig Article Award is a competitive award bestowed upon the undergraduate or recent graduate in economics submitting the best article in any year. (Economics refers to both theoretical and applied economics, and students writing papers in agricultural economics or other areas of applied economics are eligible for award as long as there is an Omicron Delta Epsilon chapter on their campus and they are members thereof.)

Who is Eligible - Anyone satisfying one of the following 3 criteria: (1) Any undergraduate student in a school with an Omicron Delta Epsilon chapter; (2) Any student who received his bachelor's degree from such a school not more than two years prior to entering the competition, and (3) Any member of Omicron Delta Epsilon who received his bachelor's degree from any school not more than two years prior to entering the competitions.

Eligible Entries - Articles may be on any topic in economics. Entries of up to 5,000 words are preferred, but up to 10,000 words are acceptable.

Nature of Award - The Frank W. Taussig Award consists of a cash prize of $1000 and publication in The American Economist. In addition, the chapter submitting the winning entry receives $200.

Procedure for Participation - Submit three copies of your entry to the Selection Committee in your department. If no Committee exists in your department, submit entry with supporting letters from two faculty members to the Chairman of the Fisher/Taussig Competitions.

Deadline - An announcement is sent to each chapter each year specifying the deadlines.
Selection Process - One or more entries judged to be of superior quality in department competitions will be forwarded to the International Editorial Board. All entries judged to be of superior quality by this Board will be entered in the final competition and will be judged by the Final Selection Board.

Award Announcement - The announcement of the award is made approximately December 15th each year.

More Information - For more information, write Dr. Charles F. Phillips, Jr., Editor Fisher/Taussig Competitions, Washington & Lee University, Lexington, VA 24450.

The Outstanding Student Award provide recognition to students who assume active leadership roles in their ODE chapters. Five winners are choosen who receive 10K ODE Keys, runnerups receive an engraved rosewood pen. Nominations are made by faculty advisors each Spring.

Newsletter

The Omicron Delta Epsilon Newsletter is published on the ODE website.

Eligibility for Membership

Undergraduate candidates for election to membership in any chapter of Omicron Delta Epsilon must have an overall scholastic average of "B" and at least twelve credits in economics with an average of "B" or better and a class standing in the upper one-third. They do not necessarily have to be economics majors, but they must have a genuine interest in economics. Also, schools which have Honors Programs in Economics and which do not give grades during the last two years of course or tutorial work are eligible to have an Omicron Delta Epsilon chapter as long as the quality of work expected of the Honor Students is the equivalent of "B" grade work or better and they are in the upper one-third of their class. In the case of Universities on the British System, Honors (4th year) and Upper Economics III students are eligible, as well as the top Economics II students. Graduate students are judged solely on their graduate work. They must have an average of better than "B" and are eligible after completing one semester of full-time work. There are no admission requirements for faculty members. All are eligible and welcome to join as charter members or they may be elected later by the chapter. Chapters may also elect Honorary Members and Alumni Members (persons who graduated before the local chapter was organized). Candidates for membership must be persons of high ethical and professional standards. No one shall be denied membership because of sex, race, color, creed, or national origin. For institutions that do not have a credit hour system, an initiate must stand in the upper one-third of students studying economics and must have completed principles and have studied intermediate economic theory. Also see...

Chapter Organization

Each Chapter shall elect a President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer (although the Secretary and Treasurer may be one person), a Membership Chairman, a Program Chairman and essential Committees to conduct the affairs of the Chapter. A set of by-laws shall be adopted by each chapter and serve in its governance. The chapter by-laws may not be contrary to the International Society's Constitution.

Chapter Activities

Chapter engage in such activities as their members deem most interesting and beneficial to their development as economists. Chapters in general have an annual installation ceremony for officers and new members. Ordinarily, the purpose and philosophy of Omicron Delta Epsilon are explained when new members are welcomed and presented with their certificates of membership. A list of suggested chapter activities can be found in the appendix. The chapters are encouraged to submit their program of events for each academic year to the Central Office before January 31.

Chapter Advisors

The Faculty Advisor to the Chapter is a faculty member in a department of theoretical or applied economics. Basically the function of a Chapter Advisor is to provide leadership and continuity so that students may derive maximum benefit from their membership in Omicron Delta Epsilon.

Central Office

To request application forms and other materials or information, contact Ms. Phyllis Carter in the Central Office.