Skip to main content
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
Search

Full Article

Visit Apply Give

Hanson Memorial Fund Provides Valuable Opportunities

Hanson Memorial Fund Provides Valuable Opportunities
The Ardis J. and Emmett M. Hanson Memorial Fund for Excellence in Finance helps brings in prominent speakers for finance seminars
The Ardis J. and Emmett M. Hanson Memorial Fund for Excellence in Finance provides learning and research opportunities for students and faculty within the Department of Finance at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Established in 2009, the gift is allocated toward scholarships for students, support for outstanding junior faculty research and seminars presented by renowned scholars.
 
Several faculty members utilized the fund to attend the American Finance Association (AFA) Annual Meeting held on January 6-8 in Chicago. The AFA, in conjunction with 57 associations in related disciplines known as the Allied Social Sciences Association, hosts the three-day meeting, attracting more than 13,300 scholars from all over the world.
 
Dr. Kathy Farrell, interim dean of the College of Business Administration and State Farm Professor of Finance, attended the conference, along with Dr. Julian Atanassov, Dr. Brian Baugh, Dr. Stanislava Nikolova, Dr. Jing Wang, Dr. Liying Wang and Dr. Julie Wu, all assistant professors of finance.
 
“I had several productive meetings with existing coauthors,” Baugh said. “One of the meetings generated a new research idea, which we’ve been diligently working on over the past few weeks. That one 30-minute encounter with my co-author proved to be the highlight of the trip.”
 
Interim Dean Dr. Kathy Farrell served as a session chair at the American Finance Association Annual Meeting
Interim Dean Dr. Kathy Farrell served as a session chair at the American Finance Association Annual Meeting
Farrell served as a session chair, facilitating authors’ presentations of five research papers on topics related to corporate boards and CEOs. The session included discussion among audience participants regarding improving and enhancing research. Topics ranged from board overlaps in mutual fund families and gender quotas inside the boardroom to republican managers and innovation.
 
“One of the values of the conference is the opportunity to meet with and interact with various faculty from around the country and the world,” Farrell said. “Many faculty from the best business schools attend this conference and present or discuss finance-related research. It provides a wonderful opportunity for Nebraska faculty to enhance their own network, showcase their research and benefit from insights provided from our peers.” 
 
The fund also provides the Ardis J. and Emmett M. Hanson Memorial Series, held throughout the year at CBA. This series offers another avenue of learning for both faculty and students, and features distinguished scholars and experts from universities around the U.S., including other Big Ten universities and Harvard University. 
 
“Inviting outside speakers to Nebraska gives us a chance to discuss a wide range of current topics in finance and hear directly from the authors about their research and the latest technology in the field,” said Wu. “The AFA Annual Meeting also allows us to network and engage in meaningful discussion on current research topics, but on a larger scale. Both the series and the annual meeting are very stimulating and expand our scope of knowledge, as well as increase the visibility of Nebraska.”
 
To learn more about the Ardis J. and Emmett M. Hanson Memorial Series visit: http://cba.unl.edu/academic-programs/departments/finance/about/seminar-series/.
Published: March 29, 2017