Ben Bernanke, the former chairman of the Federal Reserve who served during the height of the Great Recession, will speak and take questions at Leverone Hall later this month.

Bernanke will sit down with Kellogg Prof. Janice Eberly on April 25 as part of the Department of Economics’ annual Susan Bies Lecture on Economics and Public Policy.

“If you were going to ask my first choice of who to bring in of all people it would be Ben,” said Martin Eichenbaum, an economics professor who helped organize the event. “This is a person who was at the helm during the largest financial crisis arguably since the Great Depression.”

The conversation will focus on Bernanke’s actions during the Great Recession and his experiences in economics, Eichenbaum said.

Organizers opted for a conversation with Bernanke, rather than a typical lecture, to create a more dynamic experience for audience members, Eichenbaum added. Although the event is still being planned, it will also include an opportunity for audience members to ask their own questions, he said.

“(Students) may not agree with Ben, but it’s the essence of what a great university is about — to give students access to people whose ideas and actions really mattered and are shaping their lives,” Eichenbaum said.

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