FAU Economics Students Participate in Free-Market Policy Forum

Phil Smith Owls flew north to attend CAPITAF student colloquium in West Fairlee, Vermont. Located at Nobel laureate Milton Friedman’s former summer estate, CAPITAF aims to assemble curious minds to discuss public choice and policy in a Socratic-style format. Conversations centered on selected chapters from Friedman’s seminal works, Capitalism and Freedom & Free to Choose. Both texts provide granular analysis of public policy in the United States and has served as a framework for numerous presidents since their respective publications in 1962 and 1980 The best part? All discussions took place in Milton Friedman’s living room, where he famously wrote Free to Choose.  Although the Vermont temperatures were frigid, students provided piping hot takes on how to mitigate public policy issues that still linger today.

Students from University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee and Universidad Université Francisco Marroquin in Guatemala were part of the week’s discussions, allowing Florida Atlantic students to hear diverse perspectives.

As Phil Smith Director and Economics Instructor Andrew Garrison served as moderator of the week’s discussions. “From an instructor’s point of view, this is a full-on sensory experience. Seeing students come out of their shells as discussions take shape and hearing them articulate their ideas using what they have learned is simply extraordinary. I believe that our economics courses as well as our Phil Smith Center reading groups equip students with superior tools for critical thinking and inquiry.”

The Phil Smith Center for Free-Enterprise seeks to educate both students and members of the public on the benefits of the free market. One of the pillars of the center’s mission is student outreach through the Phil Smith Speaker Series as well as excursions that promote free market principles. CAPITAF aligns closely with the objectives of the Phil Smith Center in that it promotes critical thinking through a free-market lens.

For more information on upcoming speakers or student activities, please contact center director, Andrew Garrison - agarrison2018@fau.edu.

-FAU-