American Institute for Economic Research Names Next President

01:47PM / Friday, June 02, 2017Print Story | Email Story

GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. — Edward P. Stringham, a prominent U.S. political economist and thought leader in the field of private governance, has been named president of the American Institute for Economic Research, an 84-year-old research and education organization headquartered in Great Barrington.

In addition, he will serve as the organization's director of research and education. The appointment, announced by AIER’s Board of Trustees, was effective May 24.

"Dr. Stringham's accomplishments and experience make him uniquely qualified to build upon AIER’s great traditions and lead the institute in fulfilling its goals," said AIER Chairman Gregory van Kipnis. "We are confident that under his intellectual leadership AIER will succeed in carrying out its mission of educating the American people on the value of personal freedom, free enterprise, property rights, limited government and sound money in advancing peace, prosperity and human progress."

Stringham, who is the K.W. Davis Professor of Economic Organizations and Innovation at Trinity College in Connecticut, is a frequent contributor to both academic journals and the popular media. In addition to his position at Trinity, he also serves as editor of the Journal of Private Enterprise. He also is past president of the Society for the Development of Austrian Economics and the Association of Private Enterprise Education.

Prior to his Trinity appointment, Stringham taught at Texas Tech University, Fayetteville State University in North Carolina, Klagenfurt University in Austria and San Jose State University in California.

He is the author or editor of three books. His most recent, "Private Governance: Creating Order in Economic and Social Life," was published in 2015 by Oxford University Press.

A native of Brookline, Mass., Stringham received his B.A. from College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, Mass., and his Ph.D. from George Mason University, Fairfax, Va.

"The mission of AIER is in perfect alignment with my interests, philosophical beliefs and life's work,” Stringham said.

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Pittsfield: Should Park Square Be an Historic District?

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
12:48PM / Sunday, September 20, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The committee drafting a proposed local historic district around Park Square wants to generate interest and participation in the process.

Members launched the charge during meetings in August and September. A survey and public hearing are planned to gather feedback early on.

City Planner Kevin Rayner explained they are not just doing this out of a love for historic buildings, but for the timeless sense of place you get when you step into Park Square, which was laid out over 200 years ago and hosted the first-ever agricultural fair in 1810.

"I think that the main thing that we need to kind of park on is that this is the heart of our community, and it really sets the stage for the sense of place in Pittsfield, and any change to that should have some review and some consensus from folks who have a passion for protecting the history and that character of Pittsfield," he said to the new Local Historic District Study Committee last week.

"And there's that private property versus historic resource thing, but I’d say that a lot of these buildings on the square belong to the soul of Pittsfield here, and deserve to be protected, and I don't think that the layer of regulation that we're throwing down here is going to be unreasonable or a real boundary."

In March, the City Council voted to amend the City Code, Chapter 2, to establish the study committee.

Pittsfield has more than 20 locations on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Park Square Historical District, but the designation just allows communities to apply for federal tax credits and doesn't impose restrictions on buildings. The central area was laid out a few decades after Pittsfield was given a town charter in 1761.

A district can be one building, several buildings, or an area. Historic restrictions only apply to the exterior of buildings; the committee has authority to say a building in the district cannot be demolished.