Russell Kashian

Russell D. Kashian is a professor of economics at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he also serves as the co-founder and director of the Fiscal and Economic Research Center (FERC). He also serves as a specialist for the University of Wisconsin Extension. In the more than 15 years that he has taught at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, the focus of his efforts has been on creating a process that develops students, creates valuable applied research and serves the region. Kashian's main areas of interest involve financial intermediaries, tourism and economic development. Included in the umbrella of financial intermediaries is research regarding credit unions, community banks and minority-owned banks. His recent $400,000 W.H. Kellogg Foundation grant to study the best practices in involving young men of color in the traditional banking sector aligns with earlier research on fees and interest rates offered by minority-owned banks, the clustering of minority-owned banks and the competitiveness of credit unions. In addition to this recent grant, Kashian has built a network throughout Wisconsin that has attracted more than $450,000 in contracts with local nonprofit organizations, governmental units and businesses to the FERC.