A unique partnership between Fisher and a leading financial investment company showcased the college’s commitment to providing its students with an education that blends theory with practice.

Investment analysts from Diamond Hill Capital Management recently spent seven weeks teaching and providing undergraduate students at Fisher with insights into the firm’s investment philosophy and strategies.

“The opportunity to connect our students with finance leaders who possess decades of knowledge and experience is truly a special one," said Anil K. Makhija, dean and John W. Berry, Sr. Chair in Business at Fisher.

"When we speak of impactful partnerships that advance and elevate business education, collaborations such as this one with Diamond Hill underscore the value Fisher places on providing students with critical sources of mentorship and professional development. We are thankful to Diamond Hill, its leaders and analysts for partnering with us as we bring curriculum to life and work to create the next generation of business leaders."

Associate Professor of Finance Kewei Hou organized and directed the course, which brought back to campus alumni Bhavik Kothari (MBA ’04) and Tod Schneider (BSBA ’04; MAcc ’04) and analysts Krishna Mohanraj and Tyler Ventura.

"The collaborative nature of this course is a great example of how we're enriching our curriculum in unique ways to provide our students with an education that blends theory with practice," said Bernadette Minton, chair of the Department of Finance. "I look forward to growing this partnership and offering our students more opportunities to engage with professionals to further explore leading finance strategies."

“I was most impressed by the level of engagement and detailed nature of questions asked after each lecture,” Schneider said. “When I attended Fisher, I would frequently stay after class to ask questions, and as an analyst at Diamond Hill, I still do. So, I admired the students’ grit to learn more about the art of investing well after the class ended.”

The course, Applied Fundamental Investing, focused on providing students with five objectives:

• Increasing the ability to identify attractive investment ideas
• Honing research skills to make investment decisions and recommendations
• Gaining a better understanding of portfolio management
• Improving financial modeling skills
• Improving understanding and awareness of current issues in investment management

“Having a chance to sit in this class, which is taught by experts, was a mind-opening opportunity that I think every Fisher student should experience,” said student Andrew Norouzian. “This was a great chance for students like me to familiarize ourselves with what exactly we should expect as professionals. In addition to the classroom learning, the instructors took the time after class to talk with us and provide us with the opportunity to network.

“The course was incredible because it went beyond the textbook to include industry experience.”

The class was a positive first step in an even more robust partnership between Fisher and Diamond Hill. The undergraduate course will be taught again in 2017, a graduate-level section will be added next year, and Diamond Hill will continue to support finance initiatives at Fisher in a number of ways.

“We are excited about the future of our partnership with Fisher because it will allow us to help shape the next generation of investment professionals,” said Ric Dillon, portfolio manager and chairman, Diamond Hill, and a finance alumnus of The Ohio State University.

“The Applied Fundamental Investing course provides students with an overview of Diamond Hill’s intrinsic, value-based investment philosophy, taught by four of our research analysts who put that philosophy into practice every day. We also hope this partnership will allow us to identify investment professionals who may be a good fit for a long-term career at Diamond Hill.”