Hillsdale College Hutchison Center for Commerce and Freedom Welcomes 2025-2026 Cohort of Undergraduate Fellows
The fellows will work with faculty to study and advance free enterprise and entrepreneurship.
HILLSDALE, Mich. — Hillsdale College’s Hutchison Center for Commerce and Freedom recently welcomed its 2025-2026 cohort of undergraduate fellows. The fellows will help with the operations of the Center and work with faculty to study and advance free enterprise and entrepreneurship.
“We are excited to welcome this class of fellows as we continue to expand our work at the Hutchison Center,” said Professor of Economics Charles Steele, director of the Hutchison Center. “The fellows will contribute directly to the Center’s efforts to promote understanding of the connection between freedom, free enterprise, and private commercial activity.”
2025-2026 CCF Fellows:
- Daniel Ekstrom ’28 of Lanesboro, Minnesota
- Isaac Estabrook ’26 of South Dakota
- Alaina Estus ’28 of Darby, Montana
- Andriy Pasichnyk ’27 of Troy, Michigan
- Stephanie Zamora ’27 of Orlando, Florida
Fellows will receive a scholarship of $2,500 per semester. They will help with the operations of the Center, including the Herb and Cheryl Hutchison Annual Business Conference. They will also work with faculty members on research and related activities throughout the academic year. Undergraduate students of sophomore standing and above in any major were eligible to apply, and fellowships may be renewed for subsequent years.
The Center also welcomed Katherine Wright ’18 as its first Herbert R. Hutchison Post-Doctoral Fellow this academic year. The fellowship is a two-year position designed to foster research in economics and business that relies on Hillsdale’s distinctive approaches while remaining of interest to wider audiences. Wright’s research focuses on water rights, water markets, and free-market solutions to environmental issues.
The object of the Hutchison Center for Commerce and Freedom is to advance the study of the role of commerce in human flourishing. The center examines commerce in economic as well as historical, philosophical, cultural, and political contexts, knitting together the elements of a free society: commerce, property rights, education, and self-government. The Center recognizes that freedom is a prerequisite for successful commerce and a prosperous society.