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WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Wichita State University students are getting an up-close look at the inner workings of the financial, commodities and energy trading markets through a new high-tech center on campus.
About 75 people attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony Friday for the business school's Koch Global Trading Center, The Wichita Eagle (http://bit.ly/1AXvwOQ) reported.
Located in a renovated 800-square-foot room in Clinton Hall, where the Barton School of Business is located, the center features a 60-foot-long digital financial ticker that runs along the ceiling. There also are five flat-screen monitors on the walls that display live market data and television channels and 30 computer workstations with two screens each that provide students with real-time financial data.
The center has been up and running since this summer, and four different classes are using it this semester, said Rick LeCompte, professor and chair of WSU's department of finance, real estate and decision sciences.
Simulations "allow students to make mistakes - and learn from them," said Timothy Craft, an associate professor of finance and director of the center, in remarks before the ribbon-cutting.
WSU President John Bardo said the trading center fits with WSU's strategy of preparing students to have the knowledge and skills to immediately enter the workforce upon graduation.
Elizabeth King, president and CEO of the WSU Foundation, said in a news release that private donations covered most of the cost of establishing the trading center.
Koch Industries was the initial donor on the project. Other corporate donors include Allegro Development, a Dallas-based software firm, Cargill Meat Solutions and Murfin Inc.
"This support came from our engaged alumni, many of whom were business school graduates, and from companies and corporations that are committed to the quality of education our students receive," King said.
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Information from: The Wichita (Kan.) Eagle, http://www.kansas.com
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