Meet Our Team
The UF/IFAS Economic Impact Analysis Program (EIAP) comprises an interdisciplinary team from many disciplines. Using their combined expertise in regional, marine, and natural resource economics, the EIAP team are dedicated to providing timely, impactful research. This includes but is not limited to:
- Regional economic modeling at the local, state, regional, or national level
- Economic contribution or impact analysis of industry activity, commodity production, government regulation or policies, new technologies, and industrial or community development projects.
- Evaluation of economic linkages among industries, institutions, and households
EIAP Faculty, Staff and Students
Director
Christa Court, Ph.D.
Christa is an Associate Professor in the Food & Resource Economics Department with undergraduate degrees in Economics & Spanish from Middle Tennessee State University & Master’s & Ph.D. degrees in Economics from West Virginia University. She leads numerous funded research projects involving regional economic modeling and has a growing list of related publications and other outputs. Christa holds affiliate faculty status with Florida Sea Grant, UF School of Natural Resources and Environment, the UF Water Institute, the UF/IFAS Food Systems Institute, the Regional Research Institute at West Virginia University, and the University of the Westfjords.
Research Assistant Scientist
Xiaohui "Sherry" Qiao, Ph.D.
Dr. Qiao is a Research Assistant Professor in the Economic Impact Analysis Program. She is interested in leveraging interdisciplinary technologies (GIS, data science, informatics) to solve agriculture and environmental science research questions. Her current work focuses on disaster impact analysis, geospatial analysis, data visualization, and web GIS development. Dr. Qiao earned a Ph.D. degree in Civil Engineering focused on hydroinformatics and webGIS development. She devoted her efforts to several research projects that emphasize geospatial computing, web services/apps, and cyberinfrastructure development to support environmental research.
Research Coordinator
Kelsey McDaid
Kelsey joined the EIAP in 2020 and is responsible for program management and project coordination, ensuring multi-year grant-funded projects' successful, on-time completion. She holds a B.S. in Neuroscience from the University of California, Santa Cruz; she is pursuing her M.S. in Interdisciplinary Ecology through the UF’s School of National Resources and Environment. She is intensely interested in continuing to learn and pursue interdisciplinary research and understanding the downstream economic impacts of decision-making and policy.
Ph.D. Candidate
Roberto Koeneke
Roberto was born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela, and spent part of his childhood in Gainesville, Florida. He holds a bachelor's degree from Iowa State University and a master's degree at the University of Miami in Marine Affairs and Policy. After working for over ten years with the Center for Independent Experts (CIE), he joined the Ph.D. program in Food and Resource Economics. He began his research assistantship with Dr. Christa Court at the UF/IFAS Economic Impact Analysis Program. His research interests are non-market valuation systems for ecosystem services and natural resources, spatial analysis applications for valuation methods, valuation of natural disaster impacts, and economic policy analysis.
Ph.D. Candidate
Liam Corcoran
Liam is a first year PhD student in the Food and Resource Economics Department. He is from Delaware County, Pennsylvania. He received his B.S. in Business Administration with a concentration in Economics from Towson University in 2021 and his M.S. in Agricultural Economics in 2024 at the University of Florida. His research at the University of Florida has primarily focused on policy issues related to water resources and invasive species management. He also has broader research interests in natural resource and environmental economics.
Ph.D. Student
Youmin Li
Youmin Li holds a Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Agricultural Economics. He has studied in China, Germany, Belgium and South Korea. Youmin is interested in the following research areas: Agricultural Economic and Policy Evaluation; GIS&RS Application in Rural Development.
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Brooke Ulrich
Email - LinkedIn - ORCID - ResearchGate - Resume
Brooke is a second-year Student at the University of Florida majoring in Economics. She plans to complete a combined B.A. and M.A. program in the Spring of 2027. She regularly attends events involving the following clubs: Women in Economics, Salt Company, and Younglife. Brooke is from Lake Mary, Florida, and holds a passion for travel and fitness.
Marketing & Communications Specialist
Alena Poulin
A Florida native and triple-Gator alumna, Alena holds a B.S. in Journalism, a B.A. in Anthropology, and an M.A. in Mass Communications from UF. As Marketing & Communications Specialist for UF/IFAS Food and Resource Economics, she maintains the EIAP website and oversees multimedia education and outreach efforts rooted in EIAP program research. Through her previous work with Florida EDEN and her master’s capstone on Hurricane Memory, she has dedicated herself to impactful storytelling that informs and strengthens resilience in Florida’s communities.
Professor Emeritus & Senior Advisor
Alan Hodges, Ph.D.
Alan Hodges is an Emeritus faculty member at UF, continuing to serve the Economic Impact Analysis Program as a senior advisor and economist since his retirement in 2019. He has conducted economic research on a broad range of issues and industries, including agriculture, forestry, bioenergy, healthcare, higher education, natural disasters, and tourism. He received MS and PhD degrees from UF, and BA from UChicago. Alan is a native of Iowa and lives on a small farm in Alachua County, Florida.
Meet our Affiliate & Past Members
In addition to the core team housed within the UF/IFAS Economic Impact Analysis Program, we have many affiliate members across the University of Florida and past members who remain active collaborators in our research projects.
John Lai
Faculty Affiliate
Andrew Ropicki
Faculty Affiliate
Caleb Stair
Faculty Affiliate
Sungeun Yoon
Affiliate Assistant Research Scientist