Arthur Rolnick

Arthur J. Rolnick is a senior fellow at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. He previously served at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis as a senior vice president and director of research and as an associate economist with the Federal Open Market Committee—the monetary policymaking body for the Federal Reserve System. Rolnick is working to advance multidisciplinary research on child development and social policy. His essays on public policy issues have gained national attention; his research interests include banking and financial economics, monetary policy, monetary history, the economics of federalism, and the economics of education. His work on early childhood development has garnered numerous awards, including those from the George Lucas Educational Foundation and the Minnesota Department of Health, both in 2007; he was also named 2005 Minnesotan of the Year by Minnesota Monthly magazine. In addition to his role as a senior fellow at Humphrey School for Public Affairs, Dr. Rolnick is an adjunct professor in the Department of Economics at the University of Minnesota. He has also been a visiting professor of economics at Boston College, the University of Chicago, and Lingnan College, Guangzhou, China. He is past president of the Minnesota Economic Association. He serves on several nonprofit boards related to early childhood, including Northside Achievement Zone (NAZ), Way to Grow, Think Small, Close Gaps by 5, Minnesota Early Learning Council, City of Minneapolis Cradle to K Advisory Board, New York City Early Childhood Advisory Board, and Ready Nation Advisory Board. Rolnick also serves as an ad hoc advisor to several communities across the country regarding the field of early childhood education. A native of Michigan, Rolnick has a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and a master’s degree in economics from Wayne State University, Detroit; and a doctorate in economics from the University of Minnesota.