Get involved with the exciting and engaging lectures, film screenings, workshops and
symposiums happening at the Bagwell Center for the Study of Markets and Economic Opportunity
in the Coles College of Business.
Fall 2026 Guest Speakers
Governor Scott Walker
Speaker: Governor Scott Walker President of Young America’s Foundation and 45th Governor of Wisconsin
Date: September 17, 2026
Lecture: “Market-Based Capitalism is Greater than Government-Driven Socialism”
Time: 12:45 pm - 1:40 pm
Location: Burruss Building, room 151
Drawing on lessons from history, public policy, and economic outcomes, Governor Scott
Walker will examine the differences between market-based capitalism and government-driven
socialism. Students will explore how economic freedom, entrepreneurship, and individual
initiative have shaped prosperity and opportunity in the United States and around
the world.
Lecture: “How the Founders Intended a Market-based Economy”
Time: 2:20 pm - 3:15 pm
Location: Burruss Building, room 105
Governor Walker will discuss the economic principles that influenced America’s Founding Fathers and the role of limited government, private property, and free enterprise in the nation’s founding vision. Students will gain insight into how these ideas helped shape the American economy and continue to influence policy debates today.
Speaker: Benjamin Powell Director of the Free Market Institute at Texas Tech University
Date: September 22, 2026
Time: 9:35 am - 10:30 am
Lecture: “Thailand’s Journey Out of Poverty: Sweatshops in the Global Economy”
Location: Design II building, room 112 (Marietta campus)
Though sweatshops are much maligned in popular discussion, they play an important role in lifting people out of poverty. Find out how they have improved lives in Bangladesh, Thailand, and many other countries. Find out what actions activists and policy makers take that harm workers and those that can help them.
Do immigrants steal our jobs? Depress our wages? Drain our government finances? Erode the Institutions responsible for our prosperity? Economic reasoning will help us answer each of these questions.
Bitcoin expert Jimmy Song examines how modern fiat currency systems profoundly shape economic behavior and social outcomes—often in ways that erode value, distort incentives, and go largely unseen. He then introduces Bitcoin as a compelling alternative: a transparent, scarce, and decentralized form of money designed to restore integrity to the monetary system.
Lecture: “The Economic Impact of Artificial Intelligence”
Time: 11:30 am - 12:25 pm
Location: Science Building, room 109
Bitcoin expert Jimmy Song explores how advances in artificial intelligence are beginning
to reshape productivity and the structure of the modern economy. He examines both
the promises and the pressures created by rapid technological change, offering a clear-eyed
look at how AI may influence growth, incentives, and long-term economic trends.
Speaker: Luis Vengoechea Vice President and Business Banking Relationship Manager with Citizens
Date: October 16, 2026
Lecture:“Credit Confidence: Building a Strong Financial Future”
Time: 9:10 am - 10:05 am
Lecture:“Shield Your Finances: Practical Tools for Fraud Prevention”
Time: 10:20 am - 11:15 am
Location: Burruss Building, 151
Luis Vengoechea is a Vice President and Business Banking Relationship Manager with
Citizens, where he partners with business owners across South Florida to help them
grow through strategic financing, treasury management, and relationship-based banking.
With more than 20 years of experience in business banking, Luis has worked with entrepreneurs
and companies across a wide range of industries, helping them navigate the financial
challenges of starting, operating, and expanding their businesses. He earned a Bachelor
of Science in Business Administration from Florida International University and is
proud to support Citizens' commitment to strengthening communities through financial
education and community partnerships.
Description: What is free speech? Is it an outdated idea? What about hate speech? The three-part
series Free To Speak underscores how free speech is necessary for human survival as it presents thought-provoking,
ironic, and often heartbreaking stories. Host Nadine Strossen is joined by free-speech
experts, critics, and defenders to examine its power and controversy historically
and today.
Date: Friday, November 6, 2026 Time: 9:10 am - 10:05 am Location: Burruss Building, room 151
Description: For decades, America’s college-for-all agenda has created a no-win choice for high school graduates: take on the risk and expense of college or work a low-wage job. But in an economically-challenged Virginia community, one superintendent is demonstrating the immense power of career-based learning—not as a last-chance resort for some, but as foundational for all. Multiple Choice immerses viewers in the Innovation Center, where students explore diverse careers
and master traditional and new-economy skills. Amid political turmoil and tech upheaval,
Multiple Choice offers an inspiring vision of kids finding purposeful paths within a community pursuing
the goal of prosperity for all.
