The challenges and opportunities of student-managed investment funds at metropolitan universities

The number of student-managed investment funds has grown rapidly in recent years. In the four decades since the first student-managed investment fund was established at Gannon University, the number of such funds has grown at a rate of less than one per year to thirty-four in 1993. However, that rate of growth has changed dramatically in recent years. Oak Associates Ltd., the Akron, Ohio based investment-management company, has funded ten student-managed investment funds since January 1996. The fund established by Oak Associates Ltd. at The University of Akron provides students with the opportunity to learn about investing real money on a real-time basis. The Oak Grant provides significant educational opportunities at the University and some real challenges in the organization and management of the funds.