Notice: This article is more than one year old and is part of the Henry Ford College news archive. Information in the article may be outdated. For the most current news and information about Henry Ford College, please visit hfcc.edu/news, or contact communications@hfcc.edu.
Release Date: 
Tuesday, July 7, 2020

Economics professor’s blog takes on economics and current events

Screenshot of Barber's blog
"Changes are on the horizon," says Dr. Bill Barber. He recently launched a blog dealing with current events and economics.

Dr. Bill Barber, an HFC economics professor and author, recently launched a new blog on the heels of his first book, Capitalism, Socialism, and the Promise of Democracy, which was released earlier this year.

Barber’s blog deals with current events around economics and democracy. Recent blog entries discuss hot button topics such as policing, Confederate monuments, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The purpose of Barber's blog includes:

  • Educating about basic economic concepts, principles, and ideas
  • Restoring and strengthening democracy
  • Promoting equality of economic opportunity
  • Decreasing economic inequality
  • Informing about and analyzing current events
  • Promoting discourse on how to move forward

“My blog will help get the ideas presented in my book out to the public. This is a critical time in the country, and changes are on the horizon. I try to offer a perspective that might be helpful in that process,” explained Barber, of Dearborn Heights.

The public is welcome to submit comments on all blog posts.

Who is Bill Barber?

An alumnus of Plainwell High School (near Kalamazoo), Barber earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Michigan, his master’s degree in economics from Western Michigan University, and his doctorate in economics from Wayne State University.

Barber has been at HFC since 1981 in teaching and administrative roles. He was the Associate Dean of Business from 2000-05 and Vice President of Career & Technical Education from 2005-10. He returned to faculty in 2011 after accomplishing his goals as a vice president. He also missed being in the classroom – where he’s been ever since.

He’s married to physician Dr. Tricia Barber, his wife of 45 years. Together, they have four children and four grandchildren. Three of his children took classes at HFC. His daughter Sarah also taught pre-education as an adjunct at HFC.

Book two coming soon

Currently, Barber is putting the finishing touches on his as-yet-untitled book about investing, which is based on the material he teaches in BFN 130: Beginning Investment. Since there wasn’t a textbook that covered the topic in the way he thought was best, Barber wrote the material himself. He hopes that his second book will be out in early 2021.

Capitalism, Socialism, and the Promise of Democracy is currently available for purchase on Amazon. Plans are underway for Barber’s book to be distributed through local bookstores and various e-book platforms.