As we warmly welcome Associate Professor Dan Sacks from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University to the Risk and Insurance Department at WSB, we are thrilled to take this opportunity to introduce him to you.
“I am excited to be here! Having obtained my undergraduate degree in a small liberal arts college that had great teachers, I look forward to continue paying it forward through my own teaching at UW-Madison. And regarding research, the university is overflowing with opportunities to collaborate and connect with health economists, economists, and data scientists where together we can contribute to the public good,” shared Sacks. Using his data analysis and economic expertise, Sacks is also interested in future collaborations with companies and other organizations to generate insights and find data driven solutions that are good for business and policy.
Through the Risk and Insurance Department, Sacks will continue his teaching in the area of data analysis. This fall, he teaches his first course at UW-Madison: Experiments and Causal Methods for Business Insights (GB 740). “It is a difficult and valuable area employing technology and critical thinking skills with conclusions being based on sound assumptions. I enjoy the challenge of teaching this subject area and it is so satisfying when the students eventually understand it and bring these skills together,” explained Sacks.
As for his research, Sacks’ focus is social insurance—government-provided insurance programs like Social Security, and the Affordable Care Act. “Spending on these programs is massive. The U.S. government is basically a company that also has an army. My research studies these programs: who participates in these programs, what influences their participation, how do these programs affect the participants, and what is their broader impact on the economy,” shared Sacks.
We are excited to have Associate Professor Dan Sacks with us and cannot wait for you to meet him. Recently, he moved to Madison with his partner and young children. With his family, he is enjoying exploring all that Madison has to offer and personally, he is looking forward to continuing his interests of ultimate frisbee and long distance running. He can be reached at dwsacks@wisc.edu.