Julie Steinberg | Investing in our futures

When Bernie Madoff was arrested on December 12, it was easy to dismiss him as another Wall Streeter getting his due. In the wake of massive bank and investment firm failures, we've become desensitized to the damage that's crippled our financial system. For liberal arts students especially, the fall of the titans has produced the sweet satisfaction that comes with choosing a life of Proust instead of Fuld.

But while watching Wall Street bonuses depreciate by the day is a fun new exercise, the Madoff case is a lesson for all of us. Madoff engineered the biggest Ponzi scheme in history, paying new investors with money from his first batch. Until the money ran out, that is. Now $50 billion is down the drain -- but not just for rich investors. Charities and foundations, including the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity, have lost untold sums and many have closed as a result.

t's true that when compared with the $700 billion Treasury bailout deal, $50 billion seems like pocket change. And on the surface, the impact on students' lives might seem minimal. After all, most of us haven't begun investing nor do we own charitable foundations. But what is clear is the impact the financial mess will have on our 401k's or our ability to secure loans for houses in the future.

It's our generation that will bear the brunt of baby boomer mistakes. To prepare for this, "every student should study basic corporate finance and accounting," said Michael Lewitt, the president of Harch Capital Management, a wealth management firm in Boca Raton, Fla.

Lewitt's suggestion is more than just a generalist approach to education. Though many College students might balk when faced with Finance 101, it's time to balance our lit crit with macroecon. When I start earning an income next year, I don't want to rely on money managers. I want to understand exactly how to build a nest egg. Penn can and should help out in this arena - by mandating business classes for all four schools.

Last year the Dean's Advisory Board proposed B-FLAT, a minor for College students that would include courses in Budgeting, Finance, Leadership and Teamwork. This proposal is a good step toward a business education, but a voluntary measure wouldn't have a broad enough effect.

College students are currently required to take earth science and cultural analysis courses (and rightfully so - a class entitled Energy, Oil and Global Warming changed my life). Even if students will be disgruntled to hear about yet another requirement, adding a finance sector can only enhance a liberal arts education. If there's something I've realized as my senior year comes to end, it's that I can do very few practical things. Sure, I can research Russian democratization or analyze the Azeri-Armenian conflict, but CDOs? Bond derivatives? It's an entirely new language - one every College student should have the opportunity to learn alongside Spanish.

"I have no idea how to balance a checkbook," College freshman Susan Anderson told me.

"I haven't really thought about finances but I know sooner or later I'll have to."

The courses that should be required wouldn't have to rival Wharton's 500-level class on stocks and junk bonds. Freshman year could mandate both micro and macroeconomics, sophomore and junior year could deal with accounting and home-finance, and senior year could offer seminars dealing with investment strategies.

Economics courses are only considered a supplement for the Political Science major. But it wasn't until I took Econ 1 that I understood the ramifications externalities like pollution could have for public and private policy-making.

University officials could not be reached for comment, but if the controversy surrounding B-FLAT is any indication, mandatory business courses will be met with consternation. But just as students suffer through socio-linguistics, so too should they groan through courses that will help them function as informed citizens. The people who earned $14,000 a year and bought $300,000 homes are just as much to blame as the realtors who egged them on - and College students should be equipped with enough financial savvy to avoid similar situations.

Financial terrorists like Madoff have destroyed a system we thought we could beat. Instead, we'll have to save it. The sooner, the better.

Julie Steinberg is a College senior from Boca Raton, Fla. That's What She Said appears on alternating Tuesdays. Her email address is steinberg@dailypennsylvanian.com

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