Hey all, I guess that since most of my responsibilities have been wrapped up, and many of you are aware anyway, my birthday is as good of a time as any to make it public that December 31st will be my last day at Ohio State. As of January 1st, I’ll be either full-time employed at Kernmantle Group, my new consulting company, or gainfully unemployed depending on your perspective.

I’ve had a few questions prior, so just to hit the FAQs:

1. Yes, I am tenured. But tenure exists to protect faculty from vindictive attacks on good science, not just as a job guarantee.
2. I’m not getting fired or asked to resign or leaving under a cloud. This is by my choice, and, I think, a pretty significant surprise to nearly all of my colleagues.
3. This is not spur of the moment. Mardi & I have been thinking and praying over this for at least a year. By early this semester, I had decided to leave in late ’17, but then events made it more logical to go ahead and leave now.
4. To quickly summarize, the things that are most important for my department aren’t what is most important for me. AND THAT’S OKAY. I’m not mad or grumpy or angry. I tell students all the time that employment is a two-way match. It has to be win-win. I think that the department can find someone who aligns better with their vision, and I can build something on my own that aligns better with my vision, and we will both be better off.
5. I will miss being in the classroom more than anything, as its hardest to do ‘on my own’ and I hope that the bridges I’ve crossed are intact enough to allow me to return and continue to teach about commodity markets and grain marketing.
6. Mardi & I are excited about this new phase in our lives. In the past month, I’ve felt more professionally energized and alive than at any time in the past 10 years.
7. Kernmantle Group is a consulting firm providing commodity market applied research, training, and education. Right now, it’s just Mardi & I, though hopefully that will change.
8. Yes, mom, we have health insurance.
9. Yes, dad, we have retirement, too.

I do hope that this clears things up. I want to say again that there are no hard feelings on my part toward anyone at OSU. I have loved my time in AEDE/FAES. It has been really hard to leave as its been such an integral part of our lives and our very identity. But I’m still young and have a lotta miles left in me, so its time to give Matt Roberts 3.0 a try.

• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (over breakfast…I’ve never actually read the series before, but my kids talked me into it and I’m enjoying them thoroughly.)
• Results from the 2011 Youth National Climbing Championships…my younger son didn’t make it past the first round, but he learned some valuable lessons about how hard he’ll have to work if he wants to swim in the biggest ponds.
• Debt Ceiling Options at Econbrowser. I’m sickened that there are those suggesting that the President can just ignore the debt ceiling…however, based on this President’s track record of respect for established law (Automaker bankruptcies, War Powers Resolution), it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if that were the course he chose. Don’t misunderstand, it’s Congress that has created this mess, and if the debt ceiling doesn’t get extended, I hope Congress is hoisted on its collective petard. I would just hate to see this Administration take another step toward further strengthening the executive at the expense of our nation’s laws. Related good reads on the debt ceiling: Bartlett, and Tribe.

Welcome to matthewcroberts.com. I’m in the process of updating/evolving my site. The new site should be live by April 28, 2011. In the meantime, my old site is available at iweb.matthewcroberts.com