Pennsylvania + Wall

By Dr. Angela Gutchess, Ph.D. 

Think about the times when you've commented on the superior mental feats of an older relative.  Or perhaps you've heard another person describe a senior citizen as "just as sharp as ever."  How accurate are these observations? What can hide cognitive declines, putting older adults at risk of financial exploitation?

There is substantial research documenting age-related cognitive declines. Although there are differences in ability levels and the rates at which individuals decline, everyone is expected to show some losses compared to their younger selves in fluid cognitive abilities. Fluid cognition includes effortful, in-the-moment mental actions, including memory, computations and speeded decisions. Such changes are typical of aging, rather than being hallmarks of dementia or other disorders. .... Read more...

By Heather Crist

Today, we honor the service of all U.S. military veterans.

In gratitude for their service to our country, SIFMA is proud to partner with the Wall Street Warfighters Foundation for the sixth year to provide veterans with a scholarship to the Securities Industry Institute (SII) executive education program, which is held each year at The Wharton School campus.

The mission of the Wall Street Warfighters Foundation is to identify, develop, and place veterans in long term, rewarding careers within the financial services industry following their military service. SII, offered by SIFMA in partnership with Wharton, delivers education tailored to the financial services industry and networking opportunities with world-class faculty and industry experts to nurture leadership potential and further develop the talent and strengths of students..... Read more...

By Melanie Mortimer

On June 10, the SIFMA Foundation brought four middle-school and high-school students and their teachers to New York City for a Wall Street Experience.

The students earned their way to New York’s Financial District by winning national titles in the SIFMA Foundation’s fall and spring InvestWrite competitions. InvestWrite is a national essay competition that challenges students to analyze investment scenarios and turn out the best recommendations for long-term portfolio allocations.

Wowing the panel of judges—composed of thousands of teachers and industry professionals—with their advanced insight into the working of the capital markets and long-term investing strategies, the four were chosen from among 20,000 students who participated in InvestWrite this year. .... Read more...

By Melanie Mortimer

At a recent meeting in midtown Manhattan, five different  groups presented snapshots of their portfolios to a panel of BNY Mellon portfolio managers and analysts. After each presentation, the panelists queried the speakers on the rationale for their investment strategy, asking them to explain their research process and risk tolerance.  

Who were the presenters? They were seventh and eighth grade students from Franklin Middle School in New Jersey. The presentations were part of the Invest It Forward ^™ program developed and launched in 2014 by the SIFMA Foundation. Invest It Forward is an industry-wide financial education and capital markets literacy campaign convening hundreds of financial firms committed to giving young Americans a solid understanding of the capital markets system and the invaluable tools to achieve their dreams..... Read more...

By Richard Brueckner

I grew up when we were still a nation of savers. The personal savings rate in the U.S. at the time I graduated college was hovering around the 10-percent mark. Like most people my age, I’d been schooled early on in the importance of putting money away for the future. I had my first paying job at age eight, opened my first savings account as a teenager and learned about compound interest (investment vehicles at the time were fairly straightforward)..... Read more...

By Ken Bentsen and Melanie Mortimer

 On June 9, 2012, SIFMA and the SIFMA Foundation held an awards ceremony recognizing the top five teams of the ninth annual Stock Market Game™ - “Capitol Hill Challenge” in the House Financial Services Committee Room in Washington, DC. 

 .... Read more...

By Melanie Mortimer

On June 8^th, SIFMA and the SIFMA Foundation held an awards ceremony for the New York City winners of the 2011/2012 school year InvestWrite and Stock Market Game competitions designed for 4^th-12^th graders.  The ceremony was heart-warming and showed that the program had made a profound and inspiring impact on the winners’ educational futures. When asked whether or not they were going to continue to check the securities from their portfolios over the summer, there was an exuberant “yes!”.... Read more...