Alumni and Friends Making an Impact

Accounting may not be the first career that comes to mind when you’re thinking about an academic study area known for working toward the greater good, but that altruism is an indelible part of a UD education that encourages the development of the whole person.

“Not everyone understands that business — and knowledge about business — can be used to help other people,” said Marsha Keune, associate dean for undergraduate programs for the School of Business Administration, when talking about the new student organization Flyers for Financial Literacy.

The organization is providing financially minded students from across campus with the opportunity to use their knowledge to help fellow Flyers and members of the greater Dayton community with financial issues like budgeting, student loans, credit cards, other loans, credit scores and employment paperwork. Keune called the areas “any day-to-day financial topics that affect your quality of life.” And that goal is something that hits home for all Flyers.

“We are here teaching our students to learn, lead and serve. So, we asked ourselves, ‘If we learn, lead and serve using our accounting knowledge, what would be an area where we could really help to make a difference?’”

Keune, who was chair of the accounting department, said the faculty had been discussing ways to offer additional experiential learning opportunities, but the right time hadn’t arrived. Enter the pandemic and a unique fundraising opportunity.

“I received an email telling me about the opportunity to participate in Flyer Funder [UD’s official crowdfunding platform]. I was a new department chair and wasn’t sure if I had the time to participate, but we were in the midst of the pandemic and everyone was working hard with relatively low energy. It seemed like a good time for us to do something future focused and positive.”

It turns out, the timing was great. Through Flyer Funder, Keune set a goal to raise $8,500 to support Flyers for Financial Literacy. When the books closed on Flyer Funder, they had raised $10,705.

Those funds are being used to cover the startup costs involved with ensuring that Flyers for Financial Literacy is set up for long-term success. They have already secured office space in Anderson Information Sciences Center and purchased equipment that will be used to support their efforts to help educate fellow Flyers and members of the Dayton community, including K-12 students from area schools like the Dayton Early College Academy and Holy Angels, about personal finance issues.

When asked about their success raising funds for the organization through Flyer Funder, Keune kept it real. “It didn’t happen magically, is the best way to say it. It took outreach. So, I reached out to my LinkedIn connections, and faculty who are alumni reached out and posted it on social media as well.

“We all know that UD has amazing alumni and friends who are more than willing to help when a good opportunity arises,” said Keune. “And, honestly, that’s what we saw. It was incredibly energizing to see our alumni supporting our students and Flyers for Financial Literacy.”

Learn how faculty, staff and students can raise funds for their projects with Flyer Funder.