Gardner-Webb Alumna, Dr. Sarah Curry, Testifies at House Committee Hearing

Members Recognize Her Professional and Personal Experience as Economic Public Policy Expert, Wife and Mother

BOILING SPRINGS, N.C.—Dr. Sarah Curry defended her dissertation for the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) degree at Gardner-Webb in 2021. Since then, she has used her education as a researcher in fiscal and economic public policy. Recently, her research topic, “Effects of Advance Refunding Municipal Bonds After the U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA),” gained the attention of the U.S. House Means and Ways Committee.

Because of Curry’s unique education, experience and career, she was asked to testify at the Field Hearing on The Success of Pro-Growth, Pro-Worker Tax Policy in the American Midwest. The event was held in Des Moines, Iowa, on Friday, Aug. 16, at 9 a.m. CST (10 a.m. EST). It was live streamed on YouTube.

“They contacted me because they needed a testifier from a personal/individual perspective on how the TCJA impacts families,” Curry explained. “They also wanted someone with public policy knowledge of how this legislation impacts state taxes. They knew about my dissertation, and we even discussed it over the phone as we were talking about the details of the committee hearing.”

Curry received both her Master of Business Administration (MBA) and her DBA from Gardner-Webb. Formerly of North Carolina, she and her family moved to Iowa after she earned the MBA in 2010. When Gardner-Webb started its DBA program, her finance professor, Dr. Steve Johnson, urged her to enroll. At that time, the program had a hybrid structure, with classes online and meeting in person three times per year for four days at Gardner-Webb’s Charlotte Center.

“He called me and told me I was the perfect student for the program,” Curry related. “After being accepted to the program, he agreed to be my advisor and help me find a finance dissertation topic. It was worth the additional investment and time to travel back and forth from Iowa to GWU for my DBA, because I wanted to work with Dr. Johnson, and I knew he would push me to be a better version of myself.”  

Now the DBA is offered fully online with the class meeting together through web conferencing 10 hours per class/per semester. This format maintains cohort relationships. The program also offers two in-person workshops per year, which are held on the main campus in Boiling Springs. Even though the meetings are optional, they are well attended, noted Dr. Christine Sutton, associate dean and DBA Program Director for the Godbold College of Business.

Curry valued the support that Gardner-Webb professors give to their students. She worked on her dissertation during the COVID-19 pandemic and gave birth to one son during the program and was expecting another baby when she defended her dissertation. Curry noted, “I had a lot of barriers in my way and needed regular support and motivation to complete. Dr. Johnson had high expectations for me, and I believe my dissertation was a true contribution to academic literature thanks to his guidance. I am very grateful for his friendship and support through the program.”

Dean of the Godbold College of Business Dr. Mischia Taylor noted that Curry’s initiative and success is an inspiration for students. “Sarah was the first female to graduate from the Doctor of Business Administration program in the Godbold College of Business,” Taylor observed. “Her relentless energy and dedication to her work in the program provided a path of excellence for others that followed. We are very proud of her and her accomplishments!” 

At the hearing, Curry testified from her perspectives as a wife and mother of three and as a specialist in fiscal and economic public policy. “I had always had an interest in finance, and my interest grew substantially during my MBA program at GWU,” Curry informed. “I learned that the traditional financial careers were just one path within the finance field. During my MBA program, I interned with the House Financial Services committee in Washington, D.C., during the 2009 financial crisis. This brought the classroom to life when I experienced policy debate on how the government was proposing to address the problem. That experience led me to pursue a career in public policy, specifically public finance.”

She works now as research director for Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation. Before that, she was policy director for the Platte Institute for Economic Research and has also served as a senior policy fellow for State Budget Solutions. “Throughout my career, I learned a great deal more about economic and finance policy,” Curry related. “But it wasn’t until my doctoral research that I generated an interest in bonds. My dissertation focused on municipal bonds, and I was able to incorporate my knowledge of economic and public policy into my dissertation which made it directly applicable to my profession. Since graduation, I have helped my current organization craft municipal bond reform for the state of Iowa and have created a model policy for other states to incorporate.”

Gardner-Webb University is North Carolina’s recognized leader in private, Christian higher education. A Carnegie-Classified Doctoral/Professional University, GWU is home to nine colleges and schools, more than 80 undergraduate and graduate majors, and a world-class faculty. Located on a beautiful 225-acre campus in Boiling Springs, N.C., Gardner-Webb prepares graduates to impact their chosen professions, equips them with the skills to advance the frontiers of knowledge, and inspires them to make a positive and lasting difference in the lives of others. Ignite your future at Gardner-Webb.edu.