Michael David Ricks is an assistant professor of economics, an early morning seminary teacher, and a father of four young children. After graduating from East High School in Salt Lake City and serving a mission in the Chile Concepcion South Mission, he graduated in Economics from Brigham Young University. In the process, Mike discovered his three great loves: teaching the gospel of Jesus Christ, conducting academic research, and the incomparable Mindee Sharp. Mike and Mindee married and moved to Michigan, where he completed his PhD. They now live in Lincoln, Nebraska, where Mike enjoys chasing little kids around the Great Plains and researching public economics by day and religious education by night.