“In Dr. Thoma’s hands, economics, the ‘dismal science,’ became a vibrant subject, something you needed to know in a complex world.”
The Best Teacher I Ever Had George Thoma George Thoma (above right) retired as professor of economics in 2009 after teaching at Elmhurst for 39 years. He still teaches a course now and then. The recollection is from Alan Bush ’73 (above left), senior financial futures analyst at Archer Financial Service in Chicago. When I started at Elmhurst, I was taking general education courses and trying to decide what my major would be. It was after talking to Dr. Thoma that I settled on economics. It is sometimes called the dismal science, but he proved that it could be a very vibrant subject. In his hands, it became something you needed to know in a complex world. He was the best teacher I ever had. He knew his material inside and out, and he always explained concepts several diΩerent ways so that everyone in class had an understanding of what he was trying to get across. He had a way of applying economics to practical purposes. It wasn’t just esoteric theory, even though a lot of theory was involved. He had a way of making it applicable to everyday experiences and to what was going on in the economy at the time. I have two sons. One graduated from Elmhurst and one is now a senior. Like me, when they came to Elmhurst they were not sure what they wanted to study, but after talking to Dr. Thoma and studying with him, they both became economics majors. As pleased as I was with these decisions, I didn’t steer them in that direction. It was getting to know Dr. Thoma that sold them. Prospect/ Summer 2010
57