In an unusual departure from custom, Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke this week will give the first two of four lectures about the Fed and its role in the financial crisis that emerged in 2007 to a class of college students at George Washington University, in Washington, D.C.

I’ll be there (online) and, if you are able, you might enjoy it, too. All four sessions begin at 12:45 EST.

The details are here.

It’s a fascinating story, but not a brief one. Chances are you don’t already know it, unless you have been following Economic Principals closely.

The first lecture (Tuesday March 20) describes the origins and mission of the Federal Reserve System.  The second (Thursday March 22), deals with the conduct of monetary policy by the central bank in the years after World War II.

The third (Tuesday March 27) is titled “The Financial Crisis and the Great Recession.”  The fourth (Thursday March 29) concerns the lengthy aftermath.

Transcripts and video recording will be available immediately afterwards, according to the Fed.

And I’ll be back next week, recovered from brief but incapacitating bout of finance fatigue.

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