Pub. 9 2018 Issue 4

www.wvbankers.org 16 West Virginia Banker B enjamin Franklin once said, “An investment in knowl- edge pays the best interest.” For 70 years the faculty members at the Graduate School of Banking at Louisiana State University (GSBLSU) have been investing in the next generation of bankers, providing them with the knowledge they need to be successful, both personally and professionally. Building on our tradition of excellence in instruction, our leadership team has sought student and faculty comments, consulted with GSBLSU alumni, compared our curriculum to graduates schools of banking schools in other regions of the country, and enhanced our relationship with our sponsoring state banking associations. Through these and other efforts, we are continuing a multi-year plan of modifications in the curriculum at the school. Below are highlights of recent and upcoming changes. First, across the curriculum we are emphasizing ethical de- cision making as part of leadership in the financial services industry. As a result, we replaced the freshman financial planning case with a new freshman case on ethical deci- sion-making in the banking world. Danny Payne, a long-time Texas banker, developed the course for 2018, and he is updating the case for 2019. Second, we are pleased to introduce two new upper-level courses focused on different facets of ethical leadership in 2019. Leading Inside and Outside the Bank will be a required senior course for 2019, and Leading through Advocacy will be a Junior/Senior elective for 2019. In the required course, Rita Floyd, Director of Organization Development at Trust- mark National Bank, will emphasize the importance of eth- ical leadership, the critical difference between leading and managing, how to effectively deal with conflict, and the role of bankers as stewards in their community. In the elective course, Pamela Ricco, EVP and Chief Operating Officer at the Florida Bankers Association, will help students develop better communication skills and identify ways to increase their organizational effectiveness through interacting with state and federal legislators, state and national banking associations, and the local community. Third, continuing our focus on ethical leadership, our Tuesday-evening keynote speaker last year was Dr. James Olson, former Chief of Counterintelligence at the Central Intelligence Agency. His speech was not only patriotic, but it brought up deep questions regarding our world-view of leadership and ethics. For 2019, we will welcome Tommy By Mike Highfield, PhD, CFA, CTP, Vice President for Curriculum Investment “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” Spaulding, a New York Times bestselling author, leadership expert, and nationally acclaimed speaker, to GSBLSU for an inspirational discussion of how “heart-led leadership” is the key to personal and corporate success in the financial services industry. Finally, while many of the curriculum changes above relate to leadership, be assured that we remain committed to our role as a banking school–our faculty are teaching leader- ship focused on the unique aspects of the financial services industry. We are also making changes in the operational and foundational portions of our curriculum. For example, recognizing the increasingly competitive world for corporate bank services, last year we moved Treasury Management to a required course. Taught by Mark J. Krawczyk, Principal and Owner of CZYK & Associates, this course forces bankers to evaluate their bank products from the perspective of their customer. Also, last year we introduced a new course emphasizing the risks faced by banks in the digital age: Risk Management and Cybersecurity. Chad Tagtow, a graduate of the school and Senior VP/CIO for Citizens Bank and Trust in Winter Haven, Florida offered the course as a junior/senior elective for 2018, but it will become a required junior class with a required bank study project (BSP) in 2019. At GSBLSU, our goal is to ensure that our graduates are prepared to advance and serve the needs of our industry, both today and in the future. Our next session is scheduled for May 19-31, 2019, and we invite you to visit www.gsblsu.org to learn how GSBLSU can help advance your professional career and your bank.  Mike Highfield is Professor of Finance and Warren Chair of Real Estate Finance at the College of Business at Mississippi State University. Professor Highfield is the 2017-18 President of the American Real Estate Society (ARES), and he serves on the Editorial Boards of the Journal of Real Estate Research and the Journal of Real Estate Literature. A faculty member of the Mississippi School of Banking (2005-2015), Dr. Highfield has served on the faculty of the Graduate School of Banking at LSU since 2011.