Brandon Koford

Professor of Economics

Contact

Phone: 801-626-6013
Email: brandonkoford@weber.edu
Office: Wattis Business Building, Room 238
Brandon Koford's website
Curriculum Vitae (PDF)

About

Brandon C. Koford joined the Weber State University faculty in 2010 and is a professor of economics. He served as the Chair of the Department of Economics from 2016-2022.

Koford holds doctorate and master’s degrees in economics from the Gatton College of Business and Economics at the University of Kentucky. His economics undergraduate degree is from Weber State. Koford’s research is focused in two general areas. In the area of the valuation of publicly provided goods and services, Koford has published papers that explore society’s value for higher education and how households value recycling services.

His second area of emphasis is health economics. In this area, Koford has examined the relationship between human depression and wages and written papers analyzing the effect of sibling spacing on health outcomes. Koford’s teaching includes a variety of economics and statistics courses at the Goddard School such as Principles of Microeconomics, Business Statistics and Econometrics.

Education

PhD, Economics, Gatton College of Business and Economics at the University of Kentucky, 2008

MS, Economics, Gatton College of Business and Economics at the University of Kentucky, 2005

BA, Quantitative economics, Weber State University, 2004

Awards and Recognition

Buehler Teaching Fellowship, John B. Goddard School of Business & Economics, Weber State University, 2021-2024
Presidential Teaching Excellence Award, Weber State University, 2019
Buehler Teaching Fellowship, John B. Goddard School of Business & Economics, Weber State University, 2018-2021
Buehler Research Fellowship, John B. Goddard School of Business & Economics, Weber State University, 2015-2018
Nominee for Crystal Crest Rodney H. Brady Master Teacher Award, Weber State University, 2017
Smith Research Fellowship, John B. Goddard School of Business & Economics, Weber State University, 2012-2015
Finalist for Crystal Crest Rodney H. Brady Master Teacher Award, Weber State University, 2014
Alston Excellence in Teaching Award, John B. Goddard School of Business & Economics, Weber State University, 2013
Faculty Sustainability Research Award, Weber State University, 2013
Nominee for Crystal Crest Rodney H. Brady Master Teacher Award, Weber State University, 2012
Burkhead Award 2011 for the Best Article Published in Public Budgeting & Finance in 2010
Faculty Mentor Award, John B. Goddard School of Business & Economics, 2011
Nominee for Crystal Crest Rodney H. Brady Master Teacher Award, Weber State University, 2011
Research Challenge Trust Fund II Gatton Doctoral Fellowship, University of Kentucky, 2005-2008
Outstanding Economics Graduate, Weber State University, 2004
Outstanding Baccalaureate of the Year, School of Business & Economics, Weber State University, 2004

Hobbies

For recreation, Brandon enjoys hiking and climbing. He grew up riding motorcycles through the deserts of Utah, but mostly only dreams about that now.

Publications
Google Scholar Link

Peer-Reviewed Publications
1. Gonzalez, Luis and Brandon C. Koford, 2023, "The Impact of Parental Resources on Student Outcomes Using High School Data," Empirical Economics Letters 22, no. 2: 79-87.
2. Gonzalez, Luis and Brandon C. Koford, 2022, "The Impact of Parental Resources on Student Outcomes Using Middles School Data," Journal of Economic Insight 48, no. 1: 47-67.
3. Gonzalez, Luis and Brandon C. Koford, 2019, “Investigating the Impact of Parental Resources on Student Outcomes Using Elementary School Data from Kentucky,” International Advances in Economic Research 25, no. 4: 417-427.
4. Koford, Brandon C. and Gregory Parkhurst, 2018, “Discipline Specific Case Studies in the Business Statistics Classroom: Outcomes and Attitudes,” Journal of Education for Business, 93, no. 8:384-91.
5. Grijalva, Therese, Brandon C. Koford, and Gregory Parkhurst, forthcoming, “Loss Aversion in the Classroom: A Nudge Towards a Better Grade?” College Student Journal 52, no. 1: 81-85.
6. Koford, Brandon C., Therese Grijalva, Gregory Parkhurst, 2017, “The Influence of Positive and Negative Framed Information Load: An Experimental Investigation,” Journal of Marketing Development and Competitiveness 11, no. 3:67-79.
7. Cseh, Attila, Brandon C. Koford, Ryan T. Phelps. Forthcoming, “Hospital Utilization and Universal Health Insurance Coverage: Evidence from the Massachusetts Health Care Reform Act,” Applied Health Economics and Health Policy 3, no. 6 (December): 627-635.
8. Koford, Brandon C. and Attila Cseh. 2015, “Older Americans, Depression, and Labor Market Outcomes,” Eastern Economic Journal 41, no. 1: 70-85.
9. Blomquist, Glenn C., Paul Coomes, Christopher Jepsen, Brandon C. Koford, and Kenneth Troske, 2014, “Estimating the Social Value of Higher Education: Willingness to Pay for Community and Technical Colleges,” Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis 5, no. 1.
10. Cseh, Attila, Luis Gonzalez, and Brandon C. Koford, 2013, “Fertility, Sibling Spacing, and Adolescent Exposure to Young Children,” Journal of Economics, MVEA 39, no. 2: 35-55.
11. Cseh, Attila, Luis Gonzalez, and Brandon C. Koford, 2013, “Human Capital Development: The Case of Sibling Spacing,” Southwestern Journal of Economics 10, no. 1: 46-63.
12. Koford, Brandon C., Glenn C. Blomquist, David M. Hardesty, and Kenneth R. Troske, 2012, “Estimating Consumer Willingness to Supply and Willingness to Pay for Curbside Recycling,” Land Economics (November).
13. Lipscomb, Clifford A. and Brandon C. Koford, 2011, “Conservative Dichotomous Choice Responses in the Active Policy Setting: The Case of University Parking,” Applied Economic Letters 18, no. 1 39-42.
14. Cseh, Attila and Brandon C. Koford, 2010, “The Impact of Maternity Minimum Stay Mandates on Hospitalizations: An Extension,” International Advances in Economic Research 16, no. 4 (November) 395-409.
15. Koford, Brandon C., 2010, “Private Willingness to Pay in the Context of Public Budget Choices,” Public Budgeting and Finance 30, no. 2 (Summer) 47-68.
16. Koford, Brandon C., 2010., “What Differences Do Certainty and Cheap Talk Make in Eliciting Willingness to Pay for Education?” Journal of Economics 36, no. 1 55-77.
Other Papers and Publications
1. Koford, Brandon C., forthcoming, “Recycling,” in Encylopedia of Environmental and Resource Economics, eds. Timothy Haab and John Whitehead. Greenwood.
2. Koford, Brandon C., 2009, “Citizens Budget Choices for the State of Kentucky,” in Kentucky Annual Economic Report 2008, Center for Business and Economic Research, University of Kentucky.
3. Blomquist, Glenn C., Paul Coomes, Christopher Jepsen, Brandon C. Koford, Barry Kornstein, and Kenneth Troske, 2007, “The Private, Regional, and State Economic Impacts of Kentucky Community and Technical Colleges,” Center for Business and Economic Research, University of Kentucky.
4. Blomquist, Glenn C. and Brandon C. Koford, 2006, “The Economics of Aluminum Recycling: A Literature Review and Research Agenda,” with Glenn Blomquist, Center for a Sustainable Aluminum Industry White Paper, (January).
Presentations
1. “An Experimental Test of Information Avoidance," Missouri Valley Economic Association Annual Meetings, Kansas City, MO, October 2023.
2. “Discipline Specific Case Studies in the Business Statistics Classroom: Outcomes and Attitudes," Missouri Valley Economic Association Annual Meetings, Memphis, TN, November 2018.
3. “The Influence of Positive and Negative Framed Information Load: An Experimental Investigation.”
  - International Business Research Conference, Universidad Austral, Facultad de Ciencias Empresariales, Rosario, Argentina, August 2017
  - Southern Economic Association Annual Meeting, Washington DC, November 2016
  - Missouri Valley Economic Association Annual Meeting, Kansas City, MO, October 2015
4. “Estimating the Social Value of Higher Education: Willingness to Pay for Community and Technical Colleges,” Missouri Valley Economic Association Annual Meetings, Memphis, TN, October 2012.
5. “Older Americans and Depression: An Economic Inquiry of the Effects of Depression on the Earnings of Older Americans,” Missouri Valley Economic Association Annual Meetings, Kansas City, MO, October 2011.
6. “Estimating Consumer Willingness to Supply and Willingness to Pay for Curbside Recycling,” Missouri Valley Economic Association Annual Meetings, St. Louis, MO, October 2010.
7. “What Differences Do Certainty and Cheap Talk Make in Eliciting Willingness to Pay for Education.”
  - Missouri Valley Economic Association Annual Meetings, Kansas City, MO, October 2009.
  - Southern Economic Association Annual Meetings, New Orleans, LA, November 2007.
  - Graduate Student and Faculty Workshop, Department of Economics, University of Kentucky, November, 2007.
8. “Estimating Willingness of Citizens to Pay for Recycling,” Southern Economic Association Annual Meetings, Washington D.C., November 2008.
9. “The Impact of Price Incentives and Message Appeals on Recycling,” Sloan Industry Studies Conference, Boston, MA, May 2008.