About CESI

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Dr. Edward Erickson, Chairman of the Board

Dr. Edward W. Erickson is Professor of Economics at North Carolina State University. Dr. Erickson is a teaching economist and researcher. He is widely published in scholarly journals such as the Bell Journal of Economics and Management Science, the Journal of Political Economy, the Southern Economic Journal, and the CATO journal. Dr. Erickson has testified before the U.S. Congress more than a dozen times.

Dr. Erickson received his PhD from Vanderbilt University and earned a BA from Pennsylvania State University. He has engaged in public service activities for the Office of Technology Assessment of the US Congress, the Media Institute, the Scientists Institute for Public Information, the National Academy of Sciences, and the National Petroleum Council, just to name a few. Dr. Erickson is a member of the American Economic Association and the International Association for Energy Economics. He is an advisor to the North Carolina Japan Center.

Dr. Diane Chen, Secretary

Dr. Diane Chen, Founder, President, and Chief Executive Office of CESI, brings her vast experiences in business and education to Consumer Education Services, Inc. She is responsible to the Board of Directors and oversees all the operational functions of the company. 

Dr. Chen, a native of China played a significant role in establishing the sister state relationship between North Carolina and the Liaoning Province, China.  She served as the liaison and interpreter for Governor James Hunt’s trade delegation to China in 1998.  In addition, Dr. Chen worked as the International Program Coordinator at Howard Community College in Maryland from 1994 to 1996.  Prior to founding CESI in 1998, Dr. Chen was the President of New China Development Corporation for six years. In that capacity, she helped many North Carolina businesses, government agencies, and educational institutions establish partnerships with China, and worked as a consultant to facilitate the trade and business missions between US and China. 

Dr. Chen earned both her Master and Doctorate degrees in adult education from North Carolina State University in 1993 and 1995 respectively. She currently holds positions as Vice President for the Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agencies (AICCCA) as well as Advisory Board Member of First Citizens Bank. In addition, she is a member of the Encore Program at North Carolina State University and a Committee member of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Raleigh.

Dr. James Wang

Dr. Wang is the president and founder of Wang Engineering. Since its conception over 20 years ago, Wang Engineering has been a leading civil engineering consulting firm. Dr. Wang has provided our Board of Directors with over 24 years of leadership experience. He consults with many firms and government entities on a daily basis. Dr. Wang holds degrees from North Carolina State University, the University of Massachusetts, the University of Idaho and National Taiwan University. He also promotes community involvement and education. Dr. Wang has served as president of the US Southeast Chinese- American Scholars and North Carolina Section of ASAE. Dr. Wang also served on the NCSU Graduate School Board of Advisors and on the NCSU Department of Biological and Agriculture Engineering Board of Advisors for 3 years.

Dr. Fred A. Mangum

Dr. Fred A. Mangum was a Consulting Economist in Raleigh, North Carolina. His projects included evaluating natural resource policies and agricultural planning projects in Central America and Asia as well as developing loan options and investment options for FAO and Asia Development Bank.

Dr. Mangum brings extensive experience in agricultural economics to our Board of Directors. He worked with the US Department of Agriculture for six years before leading US AID funded projects in a number of less developed countries. He also served as an Associate Professor and Extension Economist for North Carolina State University for twenty years.

Dr. Mangum received his PHD in Agricultural Economics from Michigan State University. He also holds a MS in Agricultural Economics from Oklahoma State University and a BS from North Carolina State University.