About IO-Snap
As an extension of their collaborative research efforts at the Regional Research Institute at West Virginia University, Randall Jackson and Christa (Jensen) Court developed the IO-Snap app to facilitate the use of BEA's input-output data from US national make and use tables.
In addition to comprehensive economic data provision, IO-Snap is a software application with many analytical features including all aspects of fundamental input-output analyses. Data can be edited and displayed in a variety of formats and compared and contrasted across geographical definitions at different times. Cut and paste options are enabled throughout so that users can easily transfer data to spreadsheets for further analysis, graphing, etc.
Our software supports the generation of Make and Use Tables for the US, for states, for groups of states, and for generic regions defined by user input-data. In the process of assembling the various utilities that support national and state-level input-output analysis, we also have created an environment that facilitates inter-state comparisons of input-output related variables such as employment and compensation.
IO-Snap is also built with data manipulation capabilities so that users are free to edit the data, which is an essential feature for building many types of regional models. IO-Snap is designed to provide users with maximum flexibility in modifying and manipulating national and regional IO data.
IO-Snap Developers
Dr. Randall Jackson, President, Manager and Owner of EconAlyze, LLC
Professor Emeritus, Department of Geology and Geography
Former Director, Regional Research Institute
West Virginia University
Dr. Jackson has conducted regional economic impacts assessments, developed and enhanced interregional accounting frameworks, and engaged in historical demographic research to support expert testimony in environmental and health impacts litigation. His client list includes the Appalachian Regional Commission, The University of Tennessee (Knoxville), the Chicago World Fair Authority, the Chrysler Corporation, WSP (formerly Parsons Brinckerhoff), First Energy, several state and local governments, and law firms that include Levin, Papantonio, Thomas, Mitchell, Rafferty & Proctor, P.A., Pensacola, FL; Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, LLP, Washington, DC; Porter Wright Morris & Arthur, LLP, Cincinnati, OH; The Calwell Practice, PLLC Charleston, WV. Jackson and his team at EconAlyze, LLC, developed, maintain, and distribute the IO-Snap state and national economic analysis software.
Dr. Jackson began his professional career in the geography department and the Center for Governmental Studies at Northern Illinois University, then moved to the department of geography at The Ohio State University, where he also served as Associate Director for Research Computing for two years. In 2002, he assumed the role of Regional Research Institute Director and Professor of Geology and Geography. While at WVU, he also held Adjunct Professorships in WVU’s Economics and Resource Economics departments, in Geography at The Ohio State University, and in Economics at the University of Pittsburgh.
As Regional Research Institute (RRI) Director, Dr. Jackson managed or participated in funded research projects totaling more than $30M. Over two decades, the RRI hosted dozens of international visiting scholars from countries including Brazil, Chile, China, S. Korea, Australia, Uzbekistan, Turkey, Hungary, the Netherlands, and the U.K., among others, hosted several annual marquis seminar events featuring renowned scholars, and supported dozens of graduate students and postdoctoral researchers from the U.S. Brazil, Chile, China, Eritrea, Hungary, India, Iran, Ethiopia, Italy, Taiwan, and the U.K., among others. The diversity of the RRI research team was a key component of its success and productivity and lead to an atmosphere of mutual respect and understanding.
Dr. Jackson’s research interests center on regional economic health, performance, development, and sustainability with topics ranging from regional economic development strategies through the refinement and reformulation of regional economic modeling frameworks to interregional trade and conjoined macroeconomic energy and environmental modeling. As Regional Research Institute Director, he managed and or participated in funded research projects totaling more than $30M. Support for these projects came a variety of sources, including from the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Energy, the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Economic Development Administration, the National Energy Technology Laboratory, the Appalachian Regional Commission, the WV Division of Energy, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, Chicago World Fair Authority, and Dominion Resources. He has published in a wide range of academic journals and has served on the editorial boards of The Professional Geographer, Papers in Regional Science, the Journal of Regional Science, Letters in Spatial and Resource Sciences, International Regional Science Review, Spatial Statistics (Hungarian), the Australasian Journal of Regional Studies, Economic Systems Research, and Geographical Analysis.
Jackson has participated on NSF review panels and has served on the Board of Directors for the Western Regional Science Association and on the Southern Regional Science Association Council. He was 2007 Chair of the North American Regional Science Council and received the David E. Boyce Award for Distinguished Service to the Regional Science Association, International (RSAI), where he served as the editor of the RSAI Newsletter and established and maintained its first primary Internet website. He is an elected Fellow of the Regional Science Association, International (RSAI) and the Southern Regional Science Association (SRSA), where he also served as President and received the SRSA's William A. Schaffer Award for Distinguished Service to Regional Science. While at WVU, he was named Benedum Distinguished Scholar and received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the WV Association of Geospatial Professionals.
A list of works in print can be found here on the EconAlyze, LLC website.
Dr. Marwan Alkhweldi is Assistant Professor of Technological Studies at Ohio Northern University. He earned his master's degree and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering both from West Virginia University. Dr. Alkhweldi worked for several companies and institutions that include Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd, ZTE Corporation, and Regional Research Institute at WVU. His research interests include detection, estimation, and statistical signal and image processing in the area of radio astronomy and wireless systems.
Dr. Caleb Stair is our video tutorial creator and YouTube channel manager. Dr. Stair is Instructional Assistant Professor working in the Food and Resource Economics department. His teaching interests include the ethics and philosophy of economics, applied economics related to wildlife, and regional economics. Dr. Stair is also a faculty affiliate of the Economic Impact Analysis program. His research interests include natural resource economics (specifically related to wildlife), regional economics, and spatial econometrics. His studies aim to inform policymakers about the impacts of events and policies related to wildlife management and natural resource use. His recent research focuses on the economic contributions of the American Alligator to Florida's economy.
Early Contributors
Dr. Christa (Jensen) Court has been involved in numerous funded projects involving input-output analysis and impacts assessments over the last decade and has a growing list of related publications. She has undergraduate degrees in Economics and Spanish from Middle Tennessee State University and a Masters and Ph.D. in Economics from West Virginia University. During her time at West Virginia University, Christa held the position of Graduate Research Fellow at the Regional Research Institute. Christa then spent 4 years as a Staff Scientist at MRIGlobal, an independent, not-for-profit research institute that specializes in innovation, technical excellence, and problem solving across the full spectrum of research and development. Currently, she is an Assistant Professor of Regional Economics and Director of the Economic Impact Analysis Program in the Food and Resource Economics Department at the University of Florida.
Adam Fedorowicz was our programmer in early stages of development. Adam was responsible for setting up the original VB project.