Christina Hull Paxson '82
![Honors Seminar](/sites/default/files/styles/standard_page_header/public/assets/images/honors-program/hs_paxson.jpg.webp?itok=_P4bEZXV)
Paxson is currently the Hughes-Rogers Professor of Economics and Public Affairs at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School and chair of the Department of Economics. Economic development and health are the focus of her research and teaching.
Being an external examiner, 13 years after graduation, re-affirmed my belief in the value of the Honors Program. Not wanting to sell Swarthmore students short, I wrote a very challenging exam. In fact, I was a little worried that I'd made it too challenging - perhaps, during the years since leaving the College, I had developed an inflated view of the capabilities of Swarthmore students. I was not disappointed by the results, however. The students had mastered a large body of material and were able to apply economic tools to the analysis of complex problems of economic development. The best part of being an examiner was talking to the students during the orals. Each of them looked like I remember feeling toward the end of my own honors exams - somewhat frazzled after weeks of studying, and a little nervous. However, all of them were able to discuss the material with maturity and confidence. Over the course of their undergraduate education, these students had become scholars. It was a privilege to be part of their culminating academic experience at Swarthmore.