Gunderson/Gwartney Journal Awards
Each year at its annual meeting, The Association of Private Enterprise Education (APEE) presents awards for the Best Paper and Best Educational Note published in The Journal of Private Enterprise during the previous calendar year. In July 2024, the APEE Officers and Executive Committee approved the naming of each award to recognize the contributions of two long-time APEE members to the organization’s mission and to private enterprise education more generally.
APEE invites financial contributions to an endowed fund for the Gerald Gunderson Best Paper Award and James Gwartney Best Educational Note Award. Income generated from contributions to the endowed fund will be used to provide a cash award and to facilitate presentation of an engraved plaque to each award recipient starting at the APEE 50th Meeting in Las Vegas, April 2026.
To make a contribution, please visit the link below.
Gerald Gunderson Best Paper Award
The Journal of Private Enterprise was founded in 1985 with Cal Kent editing the inaugural issue and Gerald Gunderson editing it for the following two decades. During his tenure, Gerry gained the moniker ‘Dr. No’ for his fidelity to strict scholarly standards in building the reputation of The Journal. In recognition of his stewardship and contributions to the development of The Journal of Private Enterprise, APEE has established the Gerald Gunderson Best Paper Award, which continues recognition of the Best Paper published each year in The Journal, since 1990-91.
James Gwartney Best Educational Note Award
James Gwartney was a professor of economics at Florida State University for 53 years and a long time APEE member and past president. In addition to his scholarly work and efforts to communicate economic principles as a public intellectual, Jim was a master economic educator. His textbook, Economics: Private and Public Choice, is now in its 18th edition and his more recent Common Sense Economics: What Everyone Should Know about Wealth and Prosperity continues to introduce both students and the general public alike to sound economic principles. In recognition of Jim’s contributions to both APEE and to economic education more generally, APEE has established the James Gwartney Best Educational Note Award, which continues recognition of the Best Educational Note published each year in The Journal of Private Enterprise, since 1998.
The Association of Private Enterprise Education (APEE) 