Sylvester Williams, associate professor of business law, calls the new Elizabethtown College Trostle Finance Laboratory a “high end” facility.
The Lab, in which students have the opportunity to engage in real-world learning while conducting market research using software such as SAS, TradeStation and FactSet, has 21 student-computer stations, an instructor station, a 24-pixel full-color LED ticker display, two 66-inch LED Video Walls and, Williams said, real-time stock market information will be displayed on a loop. “If you want to have a good finance program, you need a finance lab,” said Williams in a phone interview.
Though no classes are scheduled for the fall semester, the lab has been operational since the end of September. The dedication of the new 600-square-foot space took place in October, 2016 Located on the first floor of the James B. Hoover Center for Business, the Lab is available for all students but intended for those studying finance and investments who take advanced-level finance classes.
The cost for the Lab’s equipment was $160,000, said Randy Trostle, associate professor of business emeritus, for whom the lab was named. Its creation has made Elizabethtown College competitive with other colleges and universities and puts it in Rise Display’s directory of finance labs.
In an email interview Trostle said he feels “privileged to be so honored by alums and friends of the College. … They have made a significant difference for our students.” The lab, he noted, will serve as “a physical home for our student-managed investment portfolio, a physical presence for the finance and business curriculum and a bit of a ‘wow’ factor for touring/visiting families.”
FactSet, the industry software that simulates trading positions and is tied to Dow Jones, allowing students to track changes over time, is utilized at Emerald Financial Advisors in Leola, Pennsylvania. The College maintains a partnership with the business and has sent interns there for the last four years. “The lab will give students a big advantage with knowledge [of the software]” said Williams, explaining that this will give students a leg up over their competition when it comes to applying for internships and jobs.