Dr. Bertram Okpokwasili
Bertram C. I. Okpokwasili is currently a tenured Professor and has been working at the Georgian Court University, School of Business and Digital Media, in Lakewood, New Jersey for the past 22 years. Georgian Court University was founded by the Sisters of Mercy, 107 years ago, as a predominantly women’s institution and went fully coed in 2014. Dr. Okpokwasili’s areas of interest include economics, statistics, and operations management at the graduate and undergraduate level. He retired early from the IBM Corporation where he spent about 28 years and retired as a Consulting Software Marketing Representative. He was responsible for various areas of engineering and management during his tenure with IBM. Dr. Okpokwasili received his bachelor’s degree from Yale University School of Engineering and Applied Science and received his master’s and Ph.D. from Columbia University, School of Engineering and Applied Science.
Why did you become a member of the International Atlantic Economic Society?
I joined the International Atlantic Economic Society (IAES) about 20 years ago to get exposure to economic conferences and scholarly writings. I had retired early from the IBM Corporation and joined the faculty of Georgian Court University, School of Business Administration. I was very much interested in reading and writing academic works.
What types of projects/research are you currently working on and what inspired/motivated you to pursue these interests?
I am currently learning about the relationship between institutions and development, especially in the developing world, and working on research about it. I come from a developing country, from a part of the world that has much in terms of resources; both natural and human. However, the country has frittered away much of the opportunity due to bribery, corruption, and tribalism. My hope is to contribute to the general discourse through research and writing. I believe that strong institutions are necessary for the development of any society.
What advice would you give to someone who is considering entering your line of work/field of study?
Anyone who is interested in this field must be willing to work hard, read quite a bit, and have a passion for what they do.
Going forward, what other projects/research are you planning to or hoping to pursue?
My hope is to write a lot more on the topics of institutions and development, specifically exploring how well countries have succeeded or failed in raising the standards of living for their people by strengthening judicial and legal institutions, government/civil service, and freedom of the press, for example.
What’s your favorite hobby?
I serve on the board of Caregivers of Central New Jersey. I am also one of the members of the Board who is an actual caregiver. As a caregiver I volunteer to drive patients to their doctor or hospital appointments. These are people who are unable to drive themselves to such critical appointments due to their physical disabilities and other limitations.
I am also a very active member of my church. In fact, I have been chairing its Scholarship Committee for more than 15 years and serving on its Vestry.
I am active in many social/political organizations, especially with respect to my country of origin, Nigeria. My wife and I like to travel, including but not limited to, Nigeria. We enjoy traveling to other parts of the world: China, Japan, New Zealand, Australia, South Korea, and many Caribbean countries.
My wife and I love to enjoy time with our large family of five sons and daughters, five sons- and daughters- in law, and 13 grandchildren. We get together at every opportunity. Our grandchildren play soccer and baseball in our backyard every holiday, and I just enjoy watching them. It brings back memories of when I played soccer for Yale and my high school in Nigeria.