What do raising sheep with two PhD parents, a sports injury, and a successful career in finance all have in common?
Finian Clark connects the dots from his childhood in Williamsburg, Missouri, to Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, joining competitive international business groups, serving as a Thompson Fellow, and promoting financial literacy for children. We also collaborate on video game design. .
The middle of three children from Williamsburg, Missouri, Finn grew up in a family culture that fostered critical thinking and an inquisitive spirit to meet the challenges of sustainably managing a sheep farm. His parents each had Ph.D.s, which served as role models for perseverance.
Finn learned constant curiosity as an essential life skill. He originally came to Benedict as a recruit for the Raven baseball team. However, after a sports injury diminished his pitching ability, he delved deeper into his inquisitiveness and work ethic learned in his childhood.
“Growing up on a family sheep farm, I learned to take care of things, to do jobs you didn't want to do because you had to,” Finn said. “This work ethic was a really, really important lesson that helped me overcome an injury setback during my first baseball season, and where else on campus could I invest my time to learn and connect? I became interested in it.”
Benedict College is one of only three campuses in the nation to host the Student International Business Council (SIBC). Founded as a club engaged in the study and implementation of socially responsible business, their creed is “Peace through Commerce.”
Finn contributed greatly to the group's presentation in San Diego. He said the experience was a true highlight of his Benedictine education. “Having the opportunity to present our team's research results in San Diego was a great experience,” he said. “The panelists told us this was the best presentation his Benedictine branch of SIBC had ever given.”
The team presented along with teams from the University of Notre Dame and the University of San Diego.
“The Benedictine SIBC team investigated how artificial intelligence (AI) is impacting the retail industry and which retail industries show the most potential for investment,” Benedictine Law and Madeline Rogers, Ph.D., assistant professor of international business. “Finian and his teammates traveled to San Diego to present their research and provide investment recommendations to business professionals, professors, and other students,” she said. “Finian demonstrated excellent financial knowledge. He contributed significantly to the financial analysis and forecasting aspects of the project.”
Mr Finn said: “Our job at the time was [AI], find companies with strong fundamental valuations and investigate specifically how they invest in AI. We ultimately chose the retail industry and Costco was our business of choice. ”
Finn, an entry-level financial accounting major, is also a fellow at the Thompson Center for Financial and Economic Health. The program helped selected students participate in real-world scenarios, such as her CAW fund, where selected students could actively manage a portion of Benedictine's endowment portfolio.
When asked about his investment strategy, Finn explained his methodology. “For the CAW Fund, he researched and designed several different scripts in Python, a high-level general-purpose programming language, to analyze price movements,” Finn said. “To model the data, he specifically used Monte Carlo simulations, daily price data, rates of change, and drift rates.”
In addition to strong academic achievements and community-building experiences, including placement on the dean's list, Finn said he has also grown in his faith life. “Every part of me has changed,” he said.
“What really changed me was my faith work at Benedictine,” Finn said. “I started wanting to know more about why my students were truly happy. I am convinced that the best way to pass on our faith is to model a good and virtuous life. It is clear that people who live by their faith are happy, and this has deepened my faith journey and made me a happier person.”
What struck Finn most about his experience in the Benedictine community was how personally invested professors and mentors were in their students. Raven He said community was an essential element of change for him.
“When choosing a college, I've been told many times that many students who attend college are seen as just a number,” he says. “A family once told me, “The only thing that matters to these institutions is how much money you have in your pocket.'' Here at Benedictine College, I've learned that that's far from the truth. , I was surprised. The first time I learned this was when I met President Stephen Minnis. He greeted me by name and knew where I was from. I was genuinely interested in learning more about the students. Another great example is our professors. After getting to know many of the professors here at Benedictine University, I can see how much they care about their students. Obviously, they always make time for me, they stay after class to answer my questions, and they do everything they can to make each student feel like a part of this community. Masu.”
Through his Benedictine education in finance, Finn learned many important career skills, including the realization that he needed to learn financial literacy at a young age. He wants to make a difference by increasing America's financial literacy.
With the help of his classmates, Finn is developing an accessible and fun video game to teach financial literacy to youth. After earning her bachelor's degree from Benedictine University, Finn plans to earn her CFA and her CPA and help people live better lives.
For Finn, the life motto for success is constant curiosity.
“Forming lifelong connections with professors and having real-world work opportunities were extremely helpful to my education at Benedictine,” Finn said. “My participation in the CAW Fund enabled me to receive a full-time summer internship with the Missouri Public Schools Pension Fund. This was a great opportunity to learn more about different investment strategies and work with a team of experienced professionals. It's an opportunity. None of this would have been possible without the Thompson Center and Benedictine College.”
