About Johanna Attoh

Current Roles
Johanna Attoh is Professor of Economics & Finance in the Walla Walla University School of Business, where she teaches Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, Development Economics, Personal Finance, and Investments. She tries to make economic theory feel relevant, helping students see how the forces that shape global markets also shape their own financial decisions. She also launched and coordinates the BizBuddy Program, a student mentoring initiative, and serves as Faculty Advisor to Delta Mu Delta and the Business Club.

Education
Attoh earned her PhD in Economics from Western Michigan University with a dissertation on global value chain fragmentation using the World Input Output Database. She also has an MA in Applied Economics from Western Michigan University.  Previously, she obtained her Master of Science in Economics from East Carolina University, and a Bachelor of Science in Economics from National University in Costa Rica. Her academic background provides students with a strong foundation in both economic theory and its practical applications.

Professional & Academic Journey
Her current research centers on international trade and global value chain fragmentation, with particular attention to how trade agreements and tariff policy reshape supply chains and ripple through the US economy. This work directly informs her teaching, giving students a grounded way to connect macro level trade policy to everyday financial choices. Her recent work, “Dynamic Trade Relationships, Tariff Costs, and GVCs: Examining the (De)Coupling Among the US, China, and Mexico,” was presented at the Western Economic Association International conference and is currently under review at Contemporary Economic Policy.  In 2025, she received the WWU Distinguished Faculty Lecturer Award, and delivered her lecture titled “Interconnected Economies: Trade in the Age of Global Value Chains.”  She has received the WWU School of Business Teaching Excellence Award twice.  Attoh is a Member of the American Economic Association, American Society of Hispanic Economists, and Western Economic Association International.

Beyond the Classroom
Originally from Costa Rica, Attoh is fluent in Spanish and English.  She has technical proficiency in SAS, Stata, R, and Power BI.  She is an active member of campus life and her church community. She led the School of Business Tour and Mission Trip to Guatemala and has served on WWU’s Presidential Search Committee and Governance Handbook Committee. She and her family are enthusiastic travelers, and when she isn’t teaching or traveling, she enjoys reading, hiking, biking, snowboarding, and paddleboarding.