The university establishes an endowed professorship for Economics Education, endowed by the entrepreneur Ernst Eugen Esch. The new professorship will be integrated into the training of economics teachers and strengthen research into economic didactics.

"Germans have no idea about economics" was the headline in the Handelsblatt newspaper in 2013 - a statement that has been confirmed by studies ever since. Yet economic knowledge is essential in order to understand how society works and to be able to act as responsible consumers.

In order to improve the economic education of young people, the university has advertised an endowed professorship for Economics Education. This is possible because entrepreneur Ernst Eugen Esch from Geestland near Bremerhaven is providing a larger sum of money as a private donor for the next eight years to finance the professorship.

"We would like to thank Ernst Eugen Esch for his far-sighted and generous commitment to the urgently needed economic education of young people. The endowed professorship will provide important impetus in the region and for society," said University President Prof Dr Ralph Bruder.

"The new endowed professorship will allow us to further strengthen teacher training and make sound economic knowledge accessible to larger sections of the population. This is an excellent addition to our work at the university and in the university-affiliated Institute for Economics Education," adds Prof Dr Dirk Loerwald, Professor of Economics Education at the University of Oldenburg and Academic Director of the affiliated Institute IÖB.

The new professorship will be involved in the training of economics teachers at the university and will also strengthen research into economic didactics. The aim is also to reduce gaps in economic education and make economic knowledge more visible in public discourse.

After the end of the financing by the founder, the professorship will be transferred to a regular professorship at the university.