Category Archives: Finance

Students Excel in Major Field Test

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Every year our college of business graduates take part in a test known as the Major Field Test meant to measure the success of the college and identify areas where improvement is needed.  This allows us not only to maintain our accreditation by the prestigious ACBSP (Accreditation Council of Business Schools and Programs), but it also provides us with a constant means of growth and improvement as a college.  Here at Lewis we use a standardized test that is taken by approximately 83,000 graduating business seniors nationwide each year.  This year we are honored to have a few of the school’s top scorers ranked among some of the highest in the nation. 

The two best scores here in the College of Business were higher than 93% of all 83,000 students taking the test.  Overall we had 10 top performers this year.  

COB Scott Myers  
SPCE Christian Axelsen  
COB Michael Tondelli  
COB Ronald Pollak  
SPCE Teresa Faris  
COB Ryan Okeefe  
COB Andrew Quinlan  
SPCE Christopher Vosnos  
SPCE Patrick Wilder  
SPCE Linda Maro

 

 

Mr. Bryan Durkin receives honorary membership from Delta Mu Delta Honors Society

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The Lewis University chapter of Delta Mu Delta is proud to announce the induction of Mr. Bryan Durkin as an honorary member.  Delta Mu Delta is a national honors society focused on recognizing exemplary scholastic achievement and promoting higher learning. His loves for Lewis University and for helping to guide young professionals are part of what make Bryan Durkin such a good fit for Delta Mu Delta.  Mr. Durkin is currently the chief operating officer of the CME Group, the world’s largest futures exchange company, and has held this position since July of 2007.  He is also the president of GFX Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of CME Group focusing on providing liquidity in foreign exchange futures.  Prior to working at the CME Group where he led the global integrations following CME’s merger with The Chicago Board of Trade, Mr. Durkin was serving as Executive Vice President and chief operating officer of the CBOT.  Mr. Durkin is himself a Lewis Alumnus and has shown great love for his alma mater over the years.  Congratulations to Mr. Bryan Durkin on receiving this honor and to Delta Mu Delta for receiving such a great honorary member into their ranks.

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Lowell Stahl Center for Entrepreneurship and Real Estate welcomes new director

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We are proud to announce the placement of Kristin Nance as the new Director of the Lowell Stahl Center for Entrepreneurship and Real Estate.  Kristin previously served as the Assistant Dean for the College of Business at Roosevelt University where she oversaw the creation of the Entrepreneurship Academy as well as the implementation of their Social Entrepreneurship degree program.  During her time at Roosevelt University Kristin also served as the Director of the Executive Education Program and the Assistant Director of the Marshall Bennett Institute of Real Estate.  Kristin has a Master of Business Administration from Illinois Institute of Technology, a Master of Science in Real Estate from Roosevelt University, and a Master of Accounting from Roosevelt University.

Kristin Nance picture for her hiring blog post actually used

New Inductees welcomed into Delta Mu Delta Honor Society

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The 2013 Senior Awards Night marked not only the end of another great year and the sending off of another class of prepared graduates, but also the induction of new members into the Delta Mu Delta chapter at Lewis University.  Delta Mu Delta is an international honor society that was founded at Harvard University back in 1913.  Its purpose is to recognize academic excellence in business administration programs, promote higher education, and reward scholastic achievement.  There are currently over 150 Delta Mu Delta chapters worldwide and it is a highly prestigious group to be invited to join.  Only the top 20% of the junior or senior College of Business students and 2nd year graduate students are invited to join.  The chapter’s faculty advisor is Dr. Yuntaek Pae and this year’s induction class includes Robert Boldog, Timothy Lydigsen, Brandon Ceplecha, Michael Bueno, Jr., Scott Denham, Alissa Digrazia, Jonathan Hicks, Martha Liace, Agnes Rychtarczyk, Steven Schoiber, Dean Schumacker, and Berenice Vargas.  Congratulations again to all of you and best of luck to this new group of inductees into the Lewis University chapter of Delta Mu delta.

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Job Prospects looking up for College of Business Graduates

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With a job market that continues to struggle and many students choosing majors in overly competitive fields leading to post-graduation woes, it seems that the majors offered here in the college of business are just what the doctor ordered.  Of the 11 positions in business forecasted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics to see a 29% growth rate from 2010-2020, we currently offer majors relating to all 11.  Business majors are currently the most popular among students nationwide, at an impressive 22% of all student majors.  This may seem like an overly competitive percentage that will lead to a fierce job search after graduation, but 63% of companies surveyed by the National association of colleges and Employers said they were looking to hire business majors.  Of the 8 best jobs by salary for recent College Graduates listed by The Huffington Post, we currently offer majors related to 6 of the jobs including Financial Analyst and Marketing Research Analyst.  While the economy continues to see dismal growth rates, college of business majors are in a position to succeed in the years to come.

Finance students gain insight into Chicago’s Financial Markets

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On March 22nd, Dr. Frank Rose took a group of business students to the Chicago Financial Markets.  The students visited the CME Group, the world’s largest derivatives exchange company; as well as the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, and TransMarket Group, a leading Chicago trading firm.  Students met with the CME Group’s Chief Operating Officer Bryan Durkin, Lewis alumnus, to discuss the role of the exchanges in the global financial markets and his responsibilities at CME.  Dan Lewis, another Lewis University alumnus, hosted the portion of the trip at TransMarket Group explaining his responsibilities as a trader at the firm.  The students continued to expand on what they have learned in the classroom when they sat down with current finance student Steven Schoiber, who is working as an intern at the CME Group, and Lewis College of Business graduates Neil VanHuis and Chris White who trade at a firm recently established by Neil VanHuis himself.

 

Dr. Yuntaek Pae’s paper accepted for publication

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Dr. Yuntaek Pae recently submitted his work on portfolio optimization to OR Spectrum and has been accepted for publication.  The paper titled Log Robust Portfolio Management after Transaction Costs was accepted for publication on February 28th and discusses the use of an approximation method to solve a Log-robust portfolio optimization problem.  Dr. Pae’s paper takes the position that by transforming the problem into a linear programming problem it becomes easier to implement in real world investing.  This is a great fit for OR Spectrum, which is an international academic journal that publishes both currently applied and theoretical entries that contribute to the development of problem solving and decision-making in management.  Please congratulate Dr. Pae on this recent achievement.

Team of Lewis Graduate Students Participates in the CME Group’s Commodity Trading Challenge

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Three students from Lewis’s Graduate School of Management are currently competing in the 2013 Commodity Trading Challenge sponsored by the CME Group in Chicago.  In the four-week competition ending on March 15th, teams from U.S. and foreign colleges and universities trade Crude Oil, Gold and Corn futures electronically in a simulated trading environment.  The Lewis team – William Cannon (MSF program), Miguel Guerrero (MBA) and Dean Schumacker (MBA) - is competing against over 300 other teams.  Members of teams with the highest dollar balances in their trading accounts at the end of the competition receive cash prizes and are eligible for paid internships at the CME Group.  The three Lewis students took Dr. Frank Rose’s Deriviatives I and Derivatives II courses in the fall 2012 semester.  The Commodity Trading Challenge affords them the opportunity to apply and extend their knowledge of the derivatives markets with a hands-on trading experience using a real-time professional trading platform.

Michael Cutright and Scott Voss are honored as Outstanding Student

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Scott Voss of Lemont and Michael Cutright of Channahon were recently recognized with the Outstanding Student Awards. Scott accepted his award for the Traditional Business Program, while Michael accepted his award for the Accelerated Business Program. Both students earned their Bachelor of Arts degrees from Lewis University in Romeoville. Scott’s degree was in Finance with a minor in Accounting, whereas Michael’s degree was in Management with an Organizational Leadership concentration.

 

The faculty had many positive things to say about Scott Voss. To mention a few, the professors stated that he performed at an extraordinary level, was always thoughtful, articulate, diplomatic, respectful, and that he was liked by many. It had been known that Scott brought a quiet intensity to his classes that set him apart from the rest. Scott was an outstanding student at Lewis and there’s no doubt that he will be an outstanding contributor to future employers.

As for Michael, Professors who taught him acknowledged that he was a motivated, humble, intelligent, lifelong learner. They were impressed by his thoughtful consideration of subjects and he was always prepared with the applicable current events and insights from his experiences. He balanced work, life, and learning with care. In addition, most of his professors noted that he had a tendency to work ahead and plan effectively so when work emergencies interfered, he didn’t let his education suffer,” commented Dr. Mike Cherry, academic coordinator of adult business programs.

Faculty Dinner and Recognition Ceremony showcases hard work, achievements

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Dr. Rami Khasawneh, Dean of the College of Business, spotlighted the continuing work and accomplishments of the faculty at the 2012 Faculty Dinner and Recognition Ceremony. In addition to welcoming full-time faculty members Kenneth Baldwin and Sandy Pacyna, Dr. Khasawneh spotlighted the $355,000 grant awarded to Dr. Faisal Abdullah and the Management Information Systems department by the Department of Defense and National Security Agency, noting that it was to be the first grant awarded to Lewis’ College of Business by the Department of Defense/NSA. Also recognized for his achievement during the summer months was Dr. Yuntaek Pae, who passed the third and final Chartered Financial Analyst exam.

Dr. Khasawneh also honored the late Dr. William Marker by relating some touching comments about Dr. Marker, who passed away in June, from other faculty members and asking for a moment of silence in his memory. During his invocation, Kenneth Baldwin also honored Dr. Marker.

A total of 41 faculty, staff and guests attended the dinner, which was catered and decorated beautifully by Bob Fraser and the Sodexho staff.

Costa Yasmine was on hand to receive his award for five years of service as an adjunct professor. Others that will receive service awards but could not attend were Gary Bannister, Mike Brashler, Robert Langert and Madeline Murphy (5 years); Mary Sue Kegl, David Rotunno and Jane Graves (10 years); Mary Kay Duggan and Waseem Nisar (15 years) and James Krejci (20 years).