YingHua He, an associate professor of economics at Rice University, died earlier this month at the age of 44 after fighting a quickly spreading cancer.
He joined Rice in 2016. He also served as an affiliated researcher at Institut des Politiques Publiques (Institute of Public Policy) in Paris and as associate faculty at the Toulouse School of Economics. His research focused on issues in applied micro, labor and education. Some of his recent work looked at market design in school choice with applications relating to school choice programs in Beijing and Paris.
“YingHua was not only a pioneering scholar of the modern empirical study of market design, but also a valued colleague who took particular care for the training and placement of graduate students,” said School of Social Sciences Dean Rachel Kimbro. “This is a tragic loss not just for his family and for Rice but also for the discipline of economics.”
His research in market design applications to education and health profoundly influenced both the field and the stature of Rice economics, said Flávio Cunha, the Ervin Kenneth Zingler Professor of Economics and department chair.
“Beyond his prolific scholarship, he was a dedicated educator and mentor, shaping the lives of numerous graduate and undergraduate students,” Cunha said. “His scientific contributions and mentorship have left an enduring legacy of excellence in academia.”
Nobel laureate Al Roth , past president of the American Economic Association, wrote a tribute to He on his blog , praising him as “one of the pioneers of empirical market design, combining econometrics with matching theory.”
In 2019, He won the award for best paper in the American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, a publication of the American Economic Association. In 2014, he won the “Young Researcher in Economics” Prize from la Fondation Banque de France. He was a faculty fellow at Columbia University from 2004-09.
He organized the econometrics seminar at Rice and the econometrics and empirical economics seminar at the Toulouse School of Economics before that. He has been a visiting professor at the Paris School of Economics, Program for Economics Research visitor at Columbia and visiting scholar at Stanford University.
Even after the diagnosis of his illness, He continued his research, service and teaching with a positive spirit, said Hülya Eraslan, the Ralph S. O’Connor Chair in Economics.
“In addition to being a dear friend and an exceptionally compassionate human being, YingHua was a dedicated colleague who went above and beyond and a dedicated teacher who guided his students with an unwavering commitment,” Eraslan said.
Xun Tang, professor of economics, the Henry S. Fox Sr. Chair of Economics and director of graduate studies, collaborated closely with He in dissertation and department committees. Tang said he always admired He’s “intellectual acumen and resilience as a researcher,” he said.
“Yet more importantly, YingHua was a noble and compassionate human being with profound affection and unwavering commitment to his family and causes,” Tang said. “He stood out with extraordinary care, consideration and a sense of responsibility.”
He continued to teach, advise doctoral students on their dissertations and undergraduate students on their senior theses, serve on committees, organize conferences and more while he battled cancer, said Mallesh Pai, the Lay Family Associate Professor of Economics, who started at Rice around the same time as He.
“Yinghua was a wonderful colleague, an inspiring scholar and a person whom it was truly an honor to call a friend,” Pai said. “I quickly realized that he was a wonderful person to talk to and seek guidance from on matters both professional and personal.”
He earned his Ph.D. in economics from Columbia, master’s from Peking University and bachelor’s from the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing.
A memorial organized by the economics department will take place Oct. 4.