Citadel Professor to Discuss Entrepreneurship at YSU Lecture

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Russell Sobel, professor of economics and entrepreneurship at The Citadel, will present the 2024 Paul J. Thomas Lecture on Entrepreneurship.

The lecture, titled “Creative Destruction, Entrepreneurship and Discovery,” will be at 6 p.m. April 16 in the Williamson College of Business Administration at Youngstown State University.

“Creative Destruction” is a term coined by Austrian economist Joseph Schumpeter, which describes how new firms replace old ones. Entrepreneurship is creative and destructive, and technology is accelerating the pace of this process.

Based on his book, “The Essential Schumpeter,” Sobel’s talk will explore the process, why it’s important, how economies can best cope with it and the political battlegrounds it creates.

Sobel earned a doctorate in economics from Florida State University in 1994. He is co-editor of the “Southern Economic Journal,” serves as a regional advisory committee member for the South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office Board of Economic Advisors and is an editorial board member for several other journals.

He is the recipient of numerous awards for both his teaching and research and is the author or co-author of more than 250 academic journal articles and books, including one of the nation’s leading principles of economics textbooks.

Sobel’s research has been featured in leading news outlets, including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Economist and CBS Evening News. His recent research focuses on the intersection of entrepreneurship and economic policy.

Tomi Ovaska, professor of economics at YSU and the Paul J. Thomas Endowed Chair in Economics, will host the April lecture.

The Paul J. Thomas Chair in Economics is supported by an endowment established to honor the donors’ father, Paul J. Thomas. Thomas was born and raised in Niles, Ohio. He earned a bachelor of science degree from Yale and continued his education at Boston University and The Ohio State University.

In 1939 he started working as a certified public accountant at Packer Thomas. Thomas joined the U.S. Navy during World War II, earning the rank of lieutenant. He returned to the Mahoning Valley after the war and went onto a business career. In addition to his service at Packer Thomas Certified Public Accountants and Business Consultants, he was vice president of Superior Industries and vice president of Easco Corp.

The Paul J. Thomas Lecture Series is free and open to the public. Parking is located in the M30 Parking Deck on Wick Avenue. For more information, contact Ovaska at [email protected] or 330 941 3084.

Pictured at top: Russell Sobel, professor of economics and entrepreneurship at The Citadel.

Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.