Ohio State alumnus David Jacobs’ interest in investing yields high return for students

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Ohio State alumnus David Jacobs' interest in investing yields high return for students

New investment laboratory established at Fisher College of Business

David C. Jacobs began plotting his career path early in high school. It would begin at The Ohio State University with a bachelor's degree in finance and marketing before continuing on Wall Street as a stockbroker.

"It didn't quite work out as planned," he said. "But my time at Ohio State afforded me the opportunity to pivot quickly into a different industry altogether."

That industry was insurance, where Jacobs spent more than 35 years building successful teams, growing his companies' revenue and expanding into new markets and products.

And while he never made it to the trading floor, Jacobs never lost interest in investing. Throughout his career, the former president and COO of Oswald Companies continued to invest in people, real estate and his alma mater.

Most recently, Jacobs and his wife Brenda, who is also an Ohio State alumna, helped establish the Jacobs Family Business Lab at the Fisher College of Business. The new hands-on learning space is designed to provide students with practical knowledge in investments, artificial intelligence, innovation and emerging business technologies.

Located on the first floor of Mason Hall on Ohio State's Columbus campus, the lab includes 30 Bloomberg terminals where students can monitor and analyze real-time market data.

"Bloomberg gives students pursuing careers on Wall Street - in investment banking, institutional asset management and wealth management - a significant competitive advantage," said Matt Sheridan, senior lecturer in finance and the Bloomberg lab director. "It is the most powerful investment tool in the world and is leveraged by financial professionals to access market data, analyze securities, conduct research and make investment decisions. More than 300,000 professionals use Bloomberg terminals as an integral part of their daily work."

Prior to the lab's dedication in September, students had access to just 12 terminals in a space that didn't allow room for instruction.

"Although the college has several computer labs, none are designed as dynamic, interactive teaching spaces," said Sheridan. "The Jacobs Lab is filling this important gap by creating a highly engaging classroom environment that allows students to learn by doing, interact with professional financial tools and develop skills that directly translate to the workplace. Most importantly, this experience has the potential to make a meaningful difference in the educational and professional lives of our students."

Jacobs said making a difference and increasing the job potential for Fisher students is what he and his wife intended for the lab.

"I hope that it can be transformational for the students," Jacobs said. "Students coming out of Fisher are some of the top in the country."

Jacobs joined Fisher's Alumni Board and four years ago became a member of the Dean's Advisory Council. That's when he learned about the need for a larger business lab.

"The lab was something that piqued my interest because I wanted to do something to give back to the students," he said. "Brenda and I wanted our gift to be educationally based."

Sheridan said the new state-of-the-art terminals will bring finance to life for students.

"A hands-on environment will allow me to move beyond teaching students about financial data and instead have them actively use it to analyze markets, evaluate investments and solve real-world financial problems," said Sheridan, who teaches in the Specialized Master of Finance program.

Professors across all departments and disciplines can use the lab for instruction. In addition to new terminals, the lab includes a digital stock ticker that scrolls around the room's exterior.

The new lab is a blueprint for the direction in which Fisher is headed, said Aravind Chandrasekaran, Fisher's interim dean.

"When we talk about disrupting business education in ways that meet the needs of our students and workforce development, the Jacobs Family Lab is proof of that concept," he said. "It's a space that's adaptable and designed to meet the needs of how today's students want ― and need ― to learn. Thanks to Dave and Brenda's incredible dedication and generosity, we're excited to take a giant step forward in our shared goal of creating a holistic educational experience that's focused on the future of business."

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