On Tuesday, Ashley Hall’s Investment Group celebrated a successful inaugural year! Part of the School’s financial literacy efforts for students, the Investment Group gives members in tenth through twelfth grades the chance to be empowered and informed about finances and to gain some real-world, hands-on experience. “We took our own interests in the world and knowledge of current events and applied them to the stock market,” says senior LouLou Byars. Group advisors include Chief Financial Officer Mark Semo, Director of the Upper School Mary Schweers, Director of Student Life Carrie Singh, and Upper School faculty members Chris Frisby and Grant Vatter.

Since its inception date of October 24, 2017, the Ashley Hall portfolio has gained approximately $950 or 10.67 percent. In addition, the Group used the Russell 3000 as a benchmark; if it had invested the same amount of money on the same date in the Russell 3000, the Group would have gained $395 or 4.46 percent, thus beating its benchmark by almost 2.5 times. Says tenth grader Hannah Lipschutz, “In a male-dominated world, this gives women a chance to see the different functions of the stock market and how trading works.”