How we started
Students started ERI in 2025. We began with seminars and tutoring, and ran a two-week summer program in 2026. This year we are running our first competition season.
About
About ERI
A student-led economics organization based in Florida that runs a national competition for high school students.
The Economic Reasoning Initiative was founded on the belief that economics should not be taught as a set of definitions to memorize, but as a way of reasoning about the world. Our mission is to help students build that way of thinking and use it beyond the classroom.
The people behind ERI
Viyan Patel
Founder & DirectorResponsible for the organization overall: competition design, chapter program, research competition, and this website. International Economics Olympiad semi-finalist; bronze medalist at U.S. Economics and Business Olympiad.
Krithik Mohanraj
Regional AmbassadorA driven sophomore with a passion for economics and business.
Soren Patel
Event CoordinatorEnthusiastic about spreading financial and technical literacy.
Sujar Kollepara
Brand AmbassadorA high school student based in Atlanta, passionate about business, finance, and economics. Top 5 state finalist at the Georgia National Personal Finance Challenge, and excited to promote ERI.
How ERI is run
Who decides
ERI is student-led. Viyan Patel is the lead responsible for program decisions. Judging will be by professionals.
Who cannot compete
If you write, review, or judge the live questions for an event, you cannot compete in that event that season.
Research
Judges read research papers without the authors’ names. A judge does not score a paper from their own school or by someone they know.
Chapters
Chapters apply, report once a year, and renew once a year. The directory shows each chapter’s status.
Policies
Based in Florida, United States. Contact: viyan@econstax.net.