A recent gift from two F&M leaders provides annual funding for hands-on career experiences.

Susan Hovanec ’92 credits her Franklin & Marshall education for preparing her for the shifts and adjustments that she has seen in the course of her more than 30 years of experience in financial services. She also credits conversations with F&M staff and a summer internship and her first job, both facilitated by Mary Mathias ’84, for starting her on her successful career path. In the decades since she graduated, Hovanec, managing director and financial advisor at RBC Wealth Management in Washington, D.C, has seen that the evolution of the financial industry has resulted in the need for a more flexible approach by those considering entry to her sector.

Conversations with other F&M alumni in financial services careers, including those close to the hiring process at their own firms, inspired Hovanec and her classmate Kathy Quick Rosa ’92, P’25, to establish the Careers in Finance Exploration Fund. Their $100,000 gift is providing opportunities for F&M students across all academic programs to develop quickly evolving technical skills helpful for securing internships and entry-level finance roles.

“This gift reflects an exceptionally important vision by Susan and Kathy for how we can better prepare and support F&M students for the financial services industry,” said F&M President Andrew Rich, “Their investment is innovative. It connects students with alumni, and it is already working, with more than 100 students already receiving intensive instruction, mentorship and career support. My thanks to Susan and Kathy for their leadership and generosity.” 

Hands-On Experience

The first program supported by Hovanec and Rosa's gift was a full-day “Training the Streets” event on Feb. 1 for 100 F&M students. This finance workshop equipped students with specialized technical skills, including financial statement analysis and corporate valuation, to complement their liberal arts education.

A Partnership Rooted in the F&M Network

While Hovanec and Rosa were undergraduates at the same time, they didn’t cross paths often during their time on campus. As they succeeded in their own careers, however, they eventually realized a shared professional experience and a mutual desire to contribute to the institution that shaped them.

“Neither of us were business majors,” Rosa says (she and Hovanec both studied government). “Our career paths were similar — different geographies, different roles, but the same type of work — and as we became reengaged over the years, it became this mosaic that's bound us together.”

Today, both women are deeply embedded in College leadership — Rosa is a member of the Board of Trustees and Hovanec serves on F&M’s Leadership Council. They’re also both charter members of F&M Women & Philanthropy, a cohort of alumnae and other F&M leaders with a shared desire to help shape the future of giving at F&M. Their involvement has allowed them to hear directly from students and recent alumni who are navigating the same questions they once did: How do I stand out? What technical skills will give me a leg up?

Those connections prompted them to ask how they could facilitate experiences that would help provide a deeper understanding of the field while building upon the structure that gave them each the flexibility to succeed in the years after graduation. Hovanec and Rosa wanted to build upon the benefits afforded by F&M’s exceptional classroom experience and extensive alumni and parent network by adding a critical third component: skills-based training that could adapt to meet the financial industry’s ever-changing needs.

Impact in Action: “Training the Street”

Shortly after their gift was made, 100 students participated in a full-day workshop led by Training the Street, a premier global business and finance training organization. The intensive session, organized by the College’s Center for Career & Professional Development, spanned valuation techniques, financial statement analysis and advanced Excel skills.

Ashley Fry, director of business/finance professions advising at F&M, notes that programs like these act as a force multiplier for the F&M curriculum.

“These experiences complement what students are gaining from a high-quality liberal arts education: critical thinking, analytical skills, a host of soft skills,” says Fry. “They equip [F&M students] with the technical skills to make them immediately competitive.”

Complementing Liberal Arts Strengths

The power of the Careers in Finance Exploration Fund lies in its ability to enhance, rather than replace, the rigorous academic work happening in F&M classrooms. Jared Peifer, assistant professor of management, emphasizes the value of bringing an industry perspective for focused insight into the job market.

“Bringing in an experienced practitioner with on-the-ground expertise is incredibly valuable for our students,” says Peifer. “Our Business, Organizations & Society (BOS) program provides a solid liberal arts foundation, and programs like this allow students to gain more focused insight into the internships and job opportunities that await them."

Jorida Papakroni, associate professor of finance, agrees. F&M faculty work closely with students on advanced concepts that aren’t always possible to explore fully in class, she says, and workshops like Training the Street play an important role in students’ learning.

“While they don’t eliminate all the structural challenges [to preparation for entry-level positions],” says Papakroni, “they play an important role in better preparing students for a competitive job market.”

A Nimble Response to Student Needs

For Hovanec and Rosa, the speed at which F&M moved from an identified need to a functioning program was a testament to the College’s culture.

“It’s a strength of F&M that the College could be so adaptable and execute on this idea in such a short period of time," says Hovanec. “F&M is responding to be relevant and on the cutting edge,” she says, particularly compared to large, public institutions that are often more inflexible. “Our size makes us nimble.”

In addition to the skills gained, the program is already fostering new connections. After President Andrew Rich posted about the February event on his LinkedIn page (and tagged Hovanec and Rosa), Rosa saw a flurry of connection requests and messages from both current students and recent graduates.

“Our alumni and students have reached out to me on LinkedIn... they see us [and our experience], and they want to connect,” Rosa says. “What we've done, and what we’re doing with this program, complements an F&M education with today’s necessary skills and tools.”

Leveraging Career Communities

Stephanie McConnell, executive director of the Center for Career and Professional Development, notes that this gift is a prime example of how alumni connections directly improve the student experience — and how Hovanec and Rosa’s philanthropy is in direct support of F&M’s Career Communities model. These dynamic student cohorts empower students to explore career pathways based on areas of interest rather than job titles, and help to facilitate curated and organic networks that provide students guidance and mentorship, both on and off campus.

“The design of our Career Center, like our curriculum, is distinct, and this gift and the program it supports is a perfect example of that,” she says. “Together, we're able to effectively supplement the academic experience so that our students stand out, even in the face of significant competition for internships and employment opportunities.”

Hovanec believes this combination of a broad education and specific skills is the true benefit of an F&M education.

“F&M gives you that solid foundation. You're going to get a well-rounded academic experience, accessible faculty, small classrooms, a supportive community, and yes — a powerful network,” she says. “You're going to leave F&M prepared because of all that it offers.”