Dr. Robert Johansson announced the appointment of Dr. Cindy Nickerson as the Deputy Chief Economist effective June 7th.  She will be responsible for advising the Chief Economist, the Secretary, and top policy officials regarding the economic implications of regulations and legislative proposals. 

Dr. Johansson commented “I am very pleased that Dr. Nickerson is joining the Office of the Chief Economist, as she brings to the position significant experience both in program and policy analysis and applying economic analysis to agricultural policy issues in the USDA and in academia.”

 Dr. Nickerson is a 20 year veteran of USDA, serving previously as the Director of the Market and Trade Economics Division in the Economic Research Service (ERS).  She has served as an Associate Director and Deputy Director of Research and Communications in the Resource and Rural Economics Division.

Dr. Nickerson earned a BS in Accounting from Towson University in 1986 and qualified as a certified public accountant in 1987. She earned an MS in Environmental Studies from California State University in 1995. Subsequently Dr. Nickerson received an MS degree from the University of Maryland in 1998 and a PhD in economics in 2000.