Articles

Service Learning is no taxing job for business students

April 2007

The total was surprising, but accounting major Kylin Wentz '07 had checked and double-checked the figures on the tax return forms. Her client, a Bridgeport family, was due a $3,000 tax refund.

"Their eyes just lit up when I told them," Wentz recalled with excitement. "These families work hard for their money and we can make sure they get everything that's owed to them."

Wentz is preparing taxes for low-income residents as part of the Bridgeport campaign of the Internal Revenue Service's National Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program, which is run under the auspices of the Greater Bridgeport Family Economic Security Coalition. She volunteered for the program last year, but this year it's a service learning component of the "Federal Income Taxation II" course. Dr. Kathleen Weiden, assistant professor of accounting, revised the course with the help of the Office of Service Learning.

It also qualifies as a U.S. Diversity course for the general core requirements - a first for the Accounting Department, exposing students to both economic and ethnic diversity in the population.

In class, students study fundamental principles of taxation, primarily as applied to property transactions and businesses. In addition, students read papers on the role of tax policy in welfare reform, specifically examining welfare policy motivations for several family-oriented tax credits. Many workers eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit are not aware of them.

For the most recent filing season, the majority of Bridgeport VITA clients (42 percent) identified themselves as African-American; 40 percent identified themselves as Latino/Hispanic; and 12 percent identified themselves as Caucasian. The median adjusted gross income for a Bridgeport VITA client last year was $16,615, and only 16 percent of filers had adjusted gross incomes of more than $35,450. At the service sites, where students have been preparing taxes since February, they gain experience working with real taxpayers in a real world setting, and are exposed to cutting-edge tax preparation software, Dr. Weiden said.

"We have an opportunity to apply everything we learn in class," said Nicole Krupa '07, who was touched by how appreciative the clients have been.

Each tax return refund puts a little more money back into the community. Last year, VITA helped prepare 2,168 tax returns for Bridgeport and Stratford residents, and helped these residents claim more than $3.3 million dollars in federal and state refunds, and more than $1.7 million in tax credits.

An important aspect of a Jesuit education, reflection exercises are woven into the curriculum to encourage students to think about economic and ethnic diversity, and issues of privilege and difference in U.S. society. "Hopefully, they are thinking about the role of service in their lives after college, as well as how their life experiences compare to the lives of the taxpayers they assist, and to other populations in the United States," said Dr. Weiden.

Even though Wentz volunteered for VITA last year, she has gained a better understanding of others and herself this time around. "I definitely feel like I'm getting more out of it this year as a student in Dr. Weiden's class," she said.

Wentz recalled one client who explained that her check was going straight into an account for a down payment on a house. "It is incredibly rewarding to be a part of this," Wentz said. "It really opens your eyes to see how hard people work to survive, and it made me realize how lucky I am."

Dolan School student takes top honors in global currency trading competition

November 20, 2006

Alexander Dean, a graduate student in The Charles F. Dolan School of Business at Fairfield University, rose every day before 3 a.m. this past October so he wouldn't lose his shirt.

As a competitor in the Texas A&M Inter-University Forex Trading Competition, he had to keep up with his trades of international currency in the foreign exchange market that opens before dawn. That meant staying up on the latest news, studying charts, making momentum buys and undertaking technical analysis. Mere seconds in trading can mean the loss or gain of big money, so traders have to be ready to capitalize on the constant changes of the market.

All Dean's sleepless nights paid off. He was the winner of the competition, making the most money in mock foreign exchange trading.

Hosted by Texas A&M's Mays Business School's Reliant Energy Securities and Commodities Trading Center, 90 students from 14 universities took part in making mock trades of international currencies. The students, both undergrads and graduate students, used Global Forex Trading (GFT) software that streams live price data for 60 foreign exchanges, according to Texas A&M. Each student started off with $50,000 in a mock account to make trades, while calculating in real news events that in some cases can greatly impact in a matter of moments the foreign exchange market.

Dean won $1,328 in prize money, access for six months to a $10,000 Global Forex Trading account, and many kudos for his 74.9 percent rate of return on his trades of the English pound. His closest competitors had respectively 51% and 39.9% rates of return.

Although students competed individually, there was a team trophy awarded to the university whose students collectively earned the highest overall return on equity. Penn State received that honor, with Fairfield's Dolan School team coming in fourth. In the homestretch of the competition, Fairfield's team was in first place among 17 teams.

Dean, who earned a B.S. in finance from the Dolan School in 2005, believes he won the competition because of lessons learned there, ignoring his self-doubts and going with his gut. "The biggest time I lost money was when I became afraid and I pulled my money out of the market," said the Long Island native. "Like my father says, 'You've got to go big or go home.' You can't be afraid, you just have to stick it out."

Michael T. Tucker, D.B.A., professor of finance at the Dolan School, oversaw Fairfield students in the competition, believing it would serve as a great lesson.

The competition helped students develop skills in fundamental trading, technical trading and foreign exchange rates. The Forex trading software employed by students mirrors that used by hedge fund managers and other professional traders who trade currencies to profit from fluctuating foreign exchange rates, according to Texas A&M.

Dean has his eye on working as a trader after completing his M.S. in Finance. He might not have to look too hard for a job, though. Word is that Morgan Stanley asked for the resumes of the top students in the competition. In the meantime, Dean has some advice for next year's competitors. "You can have all the charts and numbers to prove you're right, but the market tells you something else," he said. "I would say to anyone, look at your charts when trading but don't be afraid of the big moves in the market."

Fairfield University Dolan School student wins award while studying in Ireland

April 11, 2007

Kaitlin Walsh, a Fairfield University Charles F. Dolan School of Business student currently studying abroad at the National University of Ireland (NUI) Galway, was honored by The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transportation (CILT) for winning an 'Idea of the Year Award.' In order to be considered for an award, people submit ideas in the areas of Logistics, Air, Safety and Environment, Sea, Rail, and Road. The annual award was presented at a ceremony on Thursday, March 29, in Dublin.

Six NUI Galway students, including Walsh, were honored for their work in the six categories of the competition, which is open to both students and professionals. In order to win, the judges must deem the idea the most creative, and the idea should have the potential to make a significant contribution to some aspect of transportation in Ireland.

Walsh, a junior who majors in marketing in the Dolan School, took home the prize in the Rail Category with her idea to employ a reusable card for public transportation throughout Ireland. According to her plan, the card should have the characteristics of a credit card, and use radio frequency identification technology in order to allow easy boarding and convenient travel around Ireland.

Media Contact: Nancy Habetz, (203) 254-4000, ext. 2726

Gift supports simulation and trading classroom at Fairfield University's Charles F. Dolan School of Business

January 22, 2007

Fairfield University's Charles F. Dolan School of Business has received a $140,000 gift from Oliver Patrell, a member of its Advisory Council, to benefit the school's high-tech Business Education Simulation & Trading (BEST) Classroom.

The gift will be used to support the classroom's ongoing operations, including upgrades for software, data services, faculty support and hardware. The state-of-the-art BEST classroom offers students a chance to learn lessons in the dynamics of trading and the volatility of the stock market.

The BEST Classroom supports the Dolan School's mission that students be equipped with knowledge in current business concepts and practices. Using top-notch software, students make simulated real time transactions, and the room mirrors what one would encounter working in an electronic financial services environment. It boasts a streaming ticker, big board showcasing gains and losses, multi-purpose PCs that function as trading terminals and software used on Wall Street.

Norm Solomon, Ph.D., dean of the Dolan School, said the gift was the result of Oliver Patrell's membership on the Dolan School of Business Advisory Council. Mr. Patrell is former chairman and president of Colonial Penn Insurance. "We are grateful to Oliver for his generous gift, as well as the tremendous amount of guidance and insight that he continues to share with us. He has a strong commitment to the Dolan School."

The Dolan Advisory Council is comprised of top executives from an array of prominent companies. After graduating from Brown University in 1950, Mr. Patrell worked for Aetna Casualty & Surety Co for 32 years.

During his last 13 years working for the insurance company, Mr. Patrell restructured major divisions to solve operating and profitability problems. In 1982, he embarked on a new career working with a major investment company and went to work acquiring troubled or insolvent insurance companies, and returning them to profitability. His distinguished career included working with Empire Insurance Group of New York, and La Caja de Ahoro y Seguros of Argentina. In 1995, it was through an old friend, Walter G. Ryba, Jr., J.D., the late dean of the then Fairfield University School of Business, Mr. Patrell came to Fairfield. He made a presentation to students about his experience in the acquisition and restructuring of the largest insurance company in Argentina. "I later became a member of one of the earlier Advisory Councils and fell in love with Fairfield University. I have been active since. As a member of the Advisory Council, I had an early opportunity to have a tour of the BEST Classroom with Dean Norm Solomon. I was impressed. To me, this is a major and far reaching teaching innovation which places the Charles F. Dolan School on a level with the major business schools in this country. I am simply making a small contribution to support it."

Dr. Solomon said, "The funds will help us with our ongoing efforts to provide our students with experiential learning opportunities. The BEST classroom has cutting edge technology and continues to be a vital resource for our students. They receive hands-on lessons in behavior of financial markets and come face to face with experiences they would encounter in the business world. It undoubtedly gives our students a competitive edge in the job market to have these lessons."

The Advisory Council is charged with advising the dean of the Dolan School on broad issues that serve the long-range goals of the School. Members promote educational programs of the school, serve as and find high-profile guest lecturers, assist as mentors to students, help provide student internships, and serve as a sounding board to the dean in regards to the advancement of the school and its vision.

The Charles F. Dolan School of Business at Fairfield University is a leader in business curriculum innovation. An AACSB International-accredited program, The Dolan School annually serves some 1400 students in its undergraduate and graduate programs, preparing students to advance within their professions and empowering them to become leaders in their fields. In addition to substantial professional business experience, faculty members are recognized nationally and internationally for their scholarship. The school, which was named one of the best business schools in the country by The Princeton Review in the company's 2007 edition of its "Best 282 Business Schools," is housed in a technology-rich building dedicated to excellence in a business-learning environment - a facility that is among the best in the nation. For more information on the Dolan School of Business program offerings, call (203) 254-4070, or e-mail: gradadmis@mail.fairfield.edu.