Office of University Relations
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Financial planning students win national competition for
innovative ideas to solve America's retirement problem
Contact:
Laura L Neff-Henderson[1]
540-231-5349
lauranh@vt.edu
BLACKSBURG, Va., Feb. 29, 2012 – What started out as a class project for four Virginia Tech seniors
and aspiring financial planners has turned into one of the most rewarding experiences of their college
careers, say the participants.
In recognition of their innovative ideas in solving America’s retirement program, the team won the grand
prize in the 2011 iOME Challenge competition. They also received a $10,000 cash prize and an
all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., in late April to present their ideas to members of Congress
and policymakers.
The annual competition encourages the 80 million members of the millennial generation, to help solve
America’s retirement problem and change the world by investing now in their own lifelong financial
security.
Students Allison Perdue of White Hall, Md.; Paula Craun of Bridgewater, Va.; Jamie Kerr of
Richmond, Va.; and Matt Maranowski of Pittsburgh, Pa., began working on their award winning
submission as part of a project in Assistant Professor Hyrum Smith’s retirement planning class in fall
2011.
Shedding light on Virginia Tech and its award-winning financial planning program is one of the highlights
about the upcoming trip, said Maranowski and Kerr. They also share the excitement to network with such
a distinguished group of political leaders. They say they hope to meet the competition’s judges as well.
“The sky’s the limit,” said Marnowski. “Who knows what contacts we might make, who we might
impress.”
The students were challenged to write an essay and produce a 60-second video, answering the
question: Why do people today feel it is much harder to engage in financial savings than earlier
generations when, on average, the earlier generations were much poorer than today? What would you
propose as a solution to change and increase savings rates?
The winning answer, which is detailed in their 25-page essay – is the need for an increase in hands-on
financial education and availability of financial counseling.
“Financial planning classes should be mandatory at the high school and undergraduate levels so you get
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VIRGINIA POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE AND STATE UNIVERSITY
An equal opportunity, affirmative action institution
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Office of University Relations
315 Burruss Hall (0229), Blacksburg, Virginia 24061
540-231-5396 Fax: 540-231-1985
Email: VTnews@vt.edu
ideas on how, and why, to save [money],” said Kerr.
“So many kids just aren’t being taught these things at home,” said Maranowski who was excited to put
his longtime filmmaking hobby to use to communicate just that to his fellow millennials.
Competing against 30 college teams of more than 100 undergraduate and graduate students across the
country. Perdue, Craun, Kerr, and Maranowski were judged on how innovative, well researched, and
economically and politically sound their work was, as well as how well it resonated with the millennial
generation.
“Not only did they relate well to their peers [in the video], their paper was very well written,” said Smith,
explaining that their essay rivaled the work of the Ph.D. students who won the 2010 competition. “They
are really phenomenal students – very capable in many ways and reflect the quality of students in our
financial planning program,” said Smith who will receive a $2,000 cash prize.
In late April, Smith will accompany the students on an all-expense paid trip to the award reception in
Washington, D.C., where the students will present their ideas to members of Congress.
Perdue and Craun, both of whom graduated in December 2011, majored in applied economic
management, with a concentration in financial planning, within the Department of Agricultural and
Applied Economics in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Both are working in the financial
industry.
Kerr and Maranowski are seniors majoring in applied economic management with a concentration in
financial planning within the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics. Winning this
competition, they say, is an amazing way to end their tenure at Virginia Tech.
This year’s judges included
Marty Merzer, Miami Herald retired journalist and Pulitzer Prize winner;
Laura Schwartz, former White House director of events in the Clinton administration;
Angela Lyons, associate professor and director of the Center for Economic and Financial
Education at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign;
Michael Price, assistant professor of economics at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville; and
Charles Wise, Founding director of the John Glenn School of Public Affairs at Ohio State
University, and three-time recipient of the William and Frederick Mosher Award.
The award-winning essay and video are available online.[2]
Virginia Tech’s financial planning program was recently recognized by Financial Planning Magazine as
one of the top 10 schools in financial planning education across the country.[3]
Nationally ranked among the top research institutions of its kind, Virginia Tech’s College of Agriculture
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VIRGINIA POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE AND STATE UNIVERSITY
An equal opportunity, affirmative action institution
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Office of University Relations
315 Burruss Hall (0229), Blacksburg, Virginia 24061
540-231-5396 Fax: 540-231-1985
Email: VTnews@vt.edu
and Life Sciences[4] focuses on the science and business of living systems through learning, discovery,
and engagement. The college’s comprehensive curriculum gives more than 3,100 students in a dozen
academic departments a balanced education that ranges from food and fiber production to economics to
human health. Students learn from the world’s leading agricultural scientists, who bring the latest
science and technology into the classroom.
Related Links
Pamplin marketing students win national sales competition[5]
Virginia Tech defends regional soil judging championship[6]
Virginia Tech mining students win for fifth straight year in Carlson Software national design
competition[7]
Links
[1]. http://www.vtnews.vt.edu/articles/media-contact/neff-henderson-laura-res.html
[2]. http://iomechallenge.org/?page_id=599.
[3]. http://www.financial-planning.com/fp_issues/2011_11/financial-planning-education-10-standout-schools-2675690-1.html
[4]. http://www.cals.vt.edu/
[5]. http://www.vtnews.vt.edu/articles/2012/01/012712-pamplin-salesaward.html
[6]. http://www.vtnews.vt.edu/articles/2011/11/111011-cals-soiljudging.html
[7]. http://www.vtnews.vt.edu/articles/2011/10/101411-engineering-studentswindesigncomp.html
Invent the Future
VIRGINIA POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE AND STATE UNIVERSITY
An equal opportunity, affirmative action institution
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