Volume 5
Robert Day Gift
by Harshvardhan Chowdhary ‘10 and Maria Löhner ‘10
Spring 2008
McKenomics
CMC’S ASPIRING ECONOMISTS’ SOCIETY :
ΣΚΘΠ
Last September, CMC received an unprecedented gift
of $200 million from Robert
A. Day '65 to create the
Robert Day Scholars Program.
The objective of the program is to establish a premier master's level program in financial economics.
In addition, it creates a
Robert Day Scholars Program for students entering
their senior year at any of
the 5Cs. Graduates of the
RDS program will have developed strong quantitative
and analytical skills and
have a solid grounding in
economics and financial
market principles and practice, as well as organizational behavior and ethics.
Moreover, the RDS Program
grants its undergraduate
Scholars a 50% fellowship
for their senior year.
Beginning fall of 2009,
CMC will also offer a Master of finance degree. This
one year Master’s degree
will consist of a rigorous set
of graduate level courses in
financial economics. Students
will be designated as Robert
Day Scholars and CMC will
recruit both from within and
outside of the 5Cs.
As of this writing, the fall
2008 RDS applicants have
completed the leadership
workshop and the alumni/
faculty interviews are scheduled. The initial pool of applicants included nearly 70
students representing a variety of majors and all of the
Claremont Colleges. The
second round of the application process is complete and
the final list of Scholars will
be announced by April 27
after the alumni interviews.
The program provides selected students with training
in not only financial economics but also organizational
psychology and leadership.
The gift will also allow for
six to eight new faculty members, scholarships, financial
aid, and a significant enhancement to the College’s
career services and internship
programs, which, in turn, will
Economic Student Awards for 2006/2007
• Outstanding Senior in Econom- • Outstanding Achievement in
ics: Paul VanDeventer
• Outstanding Juniors in Econom-
Quantitative Economics:
Christian Urban, Zizheng
Wang
benefit the entire student
body.
Juniors may apply to the
Scholars Program and the
application includes a written
letter of interest, resume, your
unofficial college transcript ,current course schedule and two letters of recommendation. Students selected
from the initial pool of applicants will then go through a
half day leadership assessment workshop. After the
workshop, those remaining
are interviewed by a panel of
CMC alumni and faculty
prior to the final selection of
Scholars.
After earning his BA in
Economics from CMC in
1965, Robert A. Day founded
Trust Company of the West in
1971 with $2 million under
management and created one
of the most successful investment management firms in
the world. He is also President and CEO of the W.M.
Keck Foundation and the
former Chairman of the
Board of Trustees for CMC.
"Each year,
I recognize more and
more the value of my
CMC education."
- Robert A. Day
ics: Valay Shah, Kurt Sheline,
• Chairman Award: Elizabeth • Outstanding Stats Project: YoBlake Zacharias
Marie Schultz
shiko Tamaoki, Nancy Wang,
• Outstanding Sophomores in
and Felicia Wu
Economics: Jessica Fox, Kyle • Best Thesis: Nick Yavorsky
“Package Exchanges and
Kinnenberg, Peter McGah
Avoidable Costs”
Inside this issue:
Wall Street Weekend Highlights
3
Aspiring Economists’ Society Inaugural BarBQ
3
Aspiring Economists’ Society San Francisco Trip
2
Merrill Lynch
2
Loose Yourself in the Metrix
4
Visiting the Federal Reserve
2
New Faculty Interviews
3&4
Brought to you by AES:
• Editor-in-Chief: Maria Löhner
• Senior Editor: Carissa Tudor
• Senior Editor: Harshvardhan Chowdhary
• Copy Editor: Joshua Redel
• We would also like to acknowledge
assistance from Profs. Keil, Helland,
Filson, Bjerk, and Emily Forden.
AES Visits San Francisco by Roxanne Phen ‘10 & Jennifer Rodriguez ‘10
For Fall Break 2007, members of the
Aspiring Economists’ Society headed
north. San Francisco was one of the most
popular destinations for CMC students
this year, but only a few had the chance
to experience the city and explore possible future careers in economics. Thanks
to the student leaders of AES, Professors
Keil and Symons, and John Faranda,
seventeen lucky students were able to
tour Merrill Lynch and the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and spend a
relaxing evening at the home of CMC
Alumnus David Hetz. It was an exciting
and educational trip and a great chance to
connect with other economics majors and
professors. The official trip began Sunday
evening with a casual dinner on the
Wharf and some delectable dessert at
Ghirardelli Square. The next morning we
suited up and visited Merrill Lynch.
While some decided they would like to
look in a different direction the trip reaffirmed the career aspirations of many
members of the group.
CMC and reflect on the past few days.
The first trip sponsored by AES was most
definitely a success and we look forward
to more in the future.
We thank the Dean of Students
Office and the Robert Day School for
their generous financial support!
The San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank was our next stop. Our last
event for the weekend was a beautiful
outdoor reception at the home of Mr. and
Mrs. David Hetz. It was a perfect end to
our trip, a time when we could speak with
a CMC alumnus about the current state of
Exploring the Fed
by William Robelo-Lara ‘10 & Yuchen Zhang ‘11
Members of the AES, accompanied by
Prof. Keil, Chair of the Faculty of the
Robert Day School of Economics and
Finance, and Prof. Symons, Visiting Pro-
fessor from University College of London, arrived at the San Francisco Branch
of the Federal Reserve Bank on Monday
the 22nd of October. After a brief wait in
the lobby, our tour guide escorted us
through airport-style security.
We
proceeded to the cash vaults where bills
are received, counted, and sent out again
into circulation. The processes of eliminating counterfeit and worn out currency
were explained as we watched a machine
shred these formerly exchangeable assets
into nothing more than paper scraps. In
the second half of the tour, we saw an
exhibit of U.S currency dating back to
the first bills issued through to present;
we even got a sneak peak at a few bills
posed to premier on the market soon..
Interestingly, the largest denomination
ever issued on a bill is $100,000, with
President Woodrow Wilson on the front.
However, such bills were not in circulation as they are only used for inter-Fed
transactions. Our tour concluded with a
few functional and structural details of
the Fed expounded by our guide.
Trip to Merrill Lynch by Aleks Lyng ‘10 & Tracy Aragon ‘10
When CMC students entered the towering Merrill Lynch building and headed to
a top floor, we never anticipated that
Chris Leupold, Managing Director of
Merrill’s west coast offices, would dedicate over an hour of his time to share
with us the inter-workings of the famous
Fortune 500 cooperation and the intricacies of the investment banking profession. After gauging the group earlier on
with a few probative questions, Mr. Leupold focused his discussion on three
divisions of the firm: Investment Banking/Mergers & Acquisitions, Institutional
Sales and Trading, and Research, which
together form the foundation of Merrill’s
business operations. He welcomed stuPage 2
dents’ questions ranging from the state of
our current economy to the surge in quantitative research and its implications for
the financial services industry.
Mr. Leupold inspiringly emphasized that the “wonderful thing about
working at an investment banking firm is
that you are always learning.” The trading
floor was next, the distinctions of divisions and responsibilities was described
by Mr. Leupold as we walked through the
computer filled room. This unique opportunity to not only learn more about finance, but to palpably witness the excitement of the market transactions was remarkable. Thank you Merrill!
M C K E N O MI C S
New Faculty Profile:
Prof. Darren Filson
Welcoming Mr. Boyle!
by Andrew Jarmon ‘10
One of the new additions to the Robert Day School
faculty this year is Professor Filson. His previous
appointment was at CGU, where he lectured for 10
years. Says Prof. Filson on his coming to CMC: “I
have watched CMC's evolution and have been very
impressed. CMC has a very strong and productive
group of economists, and the student quality compares with that at the best research universities. I also
love Southern California.” Although originally from
a small farm in Saskatchewan, Canada, Professor
Filson received his masters and Ph.D. from the University of Rochester. Most of his work has had to do
with technology, focusing largely on “understanding
the process of technological change in high technology industries.” Professor Filson
is married and has a one year old
son. He spends most of his time
with his family when not working
on new research and lectures.
The Robert Day School recently announced that Kerry Boyle
has joined the School in the newly created position of Executive Director. Mr. Boyle comes to CMC from Claremont Graduate University
where he served as Executive Director of the Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management for the past seven years .
In his new position, Kerry will report to the Dean of the
RDS, Prof. Janet Smith, and have responsibility for the administration
and operations of the Robert Day School and Scholars Program. “I’ve
always admired CMC and the quality of its students and faculty.” said
Boyle, “Now to be here and to be able to contribute to the success of the
School and the Robert Day Scholars Program is a unique opportunity,
and one I find very exciting.”
Mr. Boyle is currently housed in temporary offices on Mills
Avenue and will be moving into the Bauer Center this summer. He
looks forward to meeting CMC students as we return to campus next
year.
AES Bar-B-Q by Kyle Block ‘10
On Friday, October 12, the AES hosted a
German-style BBQ complete with Bratwurst and Sauerkraut. The event was well
attended by students and the RDS faculty.
With Prof. Keil at the grill, it was a great
opportunity for new students to get acquainted with the faculty. To conclude
the event, massive cookies from Some-
Crust Bakery were provided as dessert,
which made things a whole lot sweeter!
The BBQ was a definite success and
thank you to all those you helped make
this possible with your attendance. We
thank the Robert Day School of Economics and Finance for providing the finds
for the event!
Wall Street Weekend Overview
by Chris Jones ‘11
As the rest of campus used their Saturday
morning to recoup sleep lost during the
previous week before, bleary-eyed students interested in finance made their
way to Edmunds for the 1st annual Wall
Street Weekend. WSW consisted of panels on Hedge Funds and Private Equity
firms with panelists from those fields as
well as lunch and a keynote speaker at the
Athenaeum. The Wall Street Weekend
Planning Committee, made up of students
VOLUME 5
from four of the five colleges, was able to
draw on an impressive array of panelists,
with speakers in prominent roles at companies such as Blackstone, Merrill Lynch,
Goldman Sachs, and Logos Capital Management. The Keynote speaker was Harry
T. McMahon, a CMC alum of 1975 and
current Chairman of the CMC Board of
Trustees. The event was undoubtedly a
success and set the bar high for future
organizers.
Economics Awards Dinner
The speaker, Joe Petrowski, President and
CEO of Gulf Oil in Boston, MA, and a Board
member of the Financial Economics Institute.
Gulf Oil is a $6 billion wholesaler of refined
petroleum products which supplies over 2,500
gasoline stations and delivers products and
services wholesale and retail customers
throughout the Northeast. Mr. Petrowski will
discuss the economic and political challenges
and opportunities in the energy industry. Prof.
Massoud will be the EmCee.
Reception, May 6th, 2008, at 5:30. Dinner,
awards, and talk starting at 6:00. Please
make reservations through the Athenaeum.
Page 3
T H E A S P I R I N G
E C O N O M I S T S ’ S O C I E T Y
Opportunities to meet the Economics faculty,
networking, dinners, and trips!
For more information e-mail :
CTudor09@cmc.edu
MLohner10@cmc.edu
HChowdhary10@cmc.edu
C L A R E M O N T C O N S U L T I N G
N E T W O R K
Mock interviews, workshops, information about
consulting events, networking and firm visits!
For more information e-mail :
ERen09@cmc.edu
S T U D E N T
I N V E S T E M E N T
F U N D
For more information e-mail :
SArnold08@cmc.edu
E C O N O M I C S H O N O R S
S O C I E T Y
For more information e-mail :
mkeil@cmc.edu
Crescit cum
commercio civitas.
Lose Yourself in the Metrics
by Manfred Keil & Mackenzie Keil– Long
Look, if you had one test, or one opportunity
To seize the one high score you ever wanted
one exam, would you capture it or just let it slip?
Yo, his palms are sweaty, fingers weak, calculator’s ready,
There’s vomit on his sweater already, Collins’ spaghetti,
he’s nervous, but on the surface his face looks calm and ready
To drop right answers, but he keeps on forgetting
What he wrote down, other students start scribbling so loud
He opens his pen but the formulas won’t write out
He’s chocking, how? Keil’s jokin now
Pacific Time’s run out, pencils down, over BLOW!
Snap back to reality, oh there goes gravity
Oh, there goes the grade, he choked,
he’s so mad, but he won’t give up that easy, no he won’t have it
He knows his whole GPA’s to the dogs
It don’t matter, he’s dope, he knows that, but it feels like a joke:
The time series was so stationary that he knows
When he goes back to his bunker home
That’s when it’s back to Adams lab again, yo
This whole calculation, better to capture this moment
And hope it don’t collapse on him
You better lose yourself in the metrics
The matrix, you own it you better never let it go, oh
You only get one test, You got, its your chance to ace
Cuz opportunity comes one in a million, yo
You better…
In the Next Issue: “Macrolicious” by Greg and Abbie Hess
A Conversation with Prof. Bjerk
by Harshvardhan Chowdhary ‘10 and Marya Husain ‘09
We were instantly intrigued by Prof.
David Bjerk’s beaded necklace and Doc
Martens’ at the Aspiring Economics Society’s inaugural BBQ with the Economics staff and faculty members. Professor
Bjerk (pronounced Byerk) is strikingly
disparate from the stereotypical CMC
Economics professor; his area of research
interest lie in poverty, crime and labor
economics. Professor Bjerk happily
agreed to spend an hour outside Bauer
Center casually chatting with us about his
life at CMC and at home. The following
are excerpts from our conversation with
him.
AES: How welcome do you feel at
CMC?
Prof. Bjerk: Very much so far, much
more than where I was teaching before
(McMaster University, Canada)!…I
really like it so far.
AES: Are your academic interests welcome among the general objectives of
the Economics Department?
Bjerk: While my research interests lie
somewhat outside of the norm in
economics, especially compared to the
finance and macro emphasis here at
CMC, the Department has actually been
very receptive and supportive of my
work. I have already started collaborating
on a research project with Professor
Ozbeklik, who is also new to CMC this
year. In terms of teaching, I hope to
develop a new class on poverty issues at
some point, which I hope will be of
interest to CMC students.
AES: Can you tell us a little about your
working papers?
Prof. Bjerk: Currently I am focusing on
segregation and crime; my first bit is to
look at how “poor” individuals are geographically distributed in the cities and
whether that affects their likelihood to
become involved in crime.
AES: What do you do when not immersed in academia?
Prof. Bjerk: I am very into outdoors
activities like climbing, hiking, skiing,
mountain climbing and…MOVIES. I am
a big movie buff. The opening of Laemmle theatre helped my wife make the
final decision for us to move to Claremont!
Side note from AES: Be on the lookout
for outdoors trips organized by Professor
Bjerk for his students. He would love to
work with students on his research and
working papers, so if you happen to be an
“atypical” CMC student, do check him
out.