Forty Under 40: Jeff Collins
by January 12, 2017 3:29 pm 382 views
Jeff Collins, 38, grew up in Colorado and moved to Fayetteville in 1999 to head the University of Arkansas’ Center for Business and Economic Research.
In between, he was a margin specialist for Merrill Lynch and earned two degrees in economics: a bachelor’s from Colorado State University and a Ph.D. from the University of Tennessee. He also did a stint at Lincoln Memorial University in Cumberland Gap, Tenn., serving as an assistant professor from 1996-98 and as dean of the business school from 1998-99.
Collins currently teaches in the UA’s Walton College of Business as a visiting assistant professor of economics.
Collins is on the Governor’s Council of Economic Advisers and spends much of his time speaking to various groups about the state’s economic development.
Collins’ wife, Amy Farmer, is also a teacher in the economics department.
Collins stressed the importance of having the capital needed to get things done.
“The best advice that I can give,” he said, “is the first dollar you save will be the most important dollar you’ll ever save.”
When he’s not crunching numbers pertaining to Arkansas’ economics, Collins is a wakeboarder and an avid hockey fan.
“I got cable just so I can watch hockey,” he said.