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Mihaylo Faculty Members Share Innovative Teaching Tools at Annual Financial Literacy Conference

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Cal State Fullerton Mihaylo College of Business and Economics faculty members Michael Milligan and Nick Huntington-Klein are among the speakers sharing innovative ideas to inspire middle and high school students at the annual Financial Literacy and Economics Teachers Conference July 30 and 31.

The California Council on Economics Education and CSUF’s Center for Economic Education will host the free, two-day conference on campus. About 120 educators are registered for the conference workshops and resources, including classroom-ready lessons.

“A large percentage of teachers report they are not competent to teach personal finance,” said Radha Bhattacharya, professor of economics and center director. “By providing a jumpstart on financial and economic literacy, the Center for Economic Education provides a strong foundation for today’s youth in personal financial management, and promotes the economic stability of communities.”

In-class experiments help engage students, says Huntington-Klein, assistant professor of economics. His Tuesday, July 31, Plenary 5 will feature some of the experiments he uses to encourage discussions about the principles of microeconomics. He suggests using surveys and card games to illustrate the concepts of marginal value, supply and demand, statistical discrimination in the labor market and the dynamics of entering or exiting the market.

Each experiment demonstrates economic principles and behavior, says Huntington-Klein.

“These experiments are designed to be hands-on and demonstrate to students that they, too, can have their behavior explained by economics,” he said.

Milligan, a lecturer in finance who previously mentored CSUF students in the Titan Capital Management center and the Applied Security Analysis Program, will share steps to analyze a company’s financial statement stock picking strategies — the same strategies that guide the program’s select team of students as they manage $1.5 million in stocks and bonds.

“I will be talking about the six criteria that I use to select companies that I want to invest in,” Milligan said of his Monday, July 30, Plenary 3 talk. “It is basically the same criteria that I teach my students.”

US Bank sponsors the Financial Literacy and Economics Teachers Conference. Other experts speaking or leading workshops include representatives from the Federal Reserve Bank, EMC Publishing, Next Gen Personal Finance and the Network for Teaching.