ERIC D. FINGERHUT

Eric D. Fingerhut is the Director of Economic Development Education and Entrepreneurship at Baldwin-Wallace College. His duties include responsibility for the B-W graduate program in entrepreneurship, helping B-W undergraduates connect with opportunities for entrepreneurial experiences in Greater Cleveland, and teaching business courses related to economic development. During his tenure at Baldwin-Wallace, he has worked with Professor Peter Rea on the creation of the Center for Innovation and Growth, is helping to lead an effort among seven suburban communities to combine their fire and emergency services, and has served as an advisor to the Fund for Our Economic Future.

Fingerhut has an extensive background in public service. He was elected three times to the Ohio senate, serving from 1991-92 and from 1999 to 2006. He was the ranking Democrat on the Finance (Budget) Committee and served on committees related to health, aging, environment, insurance, tax policy, economic development and education. He also was elected to one term in the U.S. House of Representatives, serving on the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, the Foreign Affairs Committee, and the Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs Committee.

A graduate of Northwestern University and the Stanford University School of Law, he was a staff attorney in The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland and an associate with Hahn Loeser and Parks, Cleveland. He has been an adjunct faculty member in the Case Western Reserve University Department of Political Science, School of Law, and Weatherhead School of Management.

His book, Making Ohio Great Again, was published in 2004 by Fairway Press. He also has published numerous articles in regional and national newspapers.