Biography: Steven Hanson is vice provost and dean of International Studies and Programs (ISP) at Michigan State University. He has been involved with ISP administration since 2009, previously serving as assistant dean and then interim dean before his appointment to ISP’s top leadership position in 2014.

Hanson leads MSU's international programming efforts, including multidisciplinary and multicollege research, education and capacity building, and global strategic partnerships. He oversees more than 20 international offices and programs at MSU, guiding research and activities that positively impact critical global issues.

Hanson has refocused MSU’s global engagement to be increasingly data-driven and impact-oriented, shaping an international strategy that leverages the university’s strengths in thematic and regional expertise with a highly collaborative partnership approach. This strategy has led to the creation of a number of innovative global strategic initiatives, including the Alliance for African Partnership, AsiaNexus, and the Global Youth Advancement Network.

Hanson first joined MSU in 1988 in the Department of Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics. From 2003-2014, he served as chair of AFRE, leading one of the most productive and highly ranked departments in the country. His research focuses on risk management with financial contracts and the valuation of financial contracts and assets, such as land. Hanson has taught graduate and undergraduate financial economics and management courses and his work has been published in leading journals such as the American Journal of Agricultural Economics and the Journal of Empirical Finance. Hanson received his Ph.D. in agricultural economics from Iowa State University.