BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – More than 4,500 people so far have taken advantage of a free opportunity to enhance their financial literacy and learn more about personal finance through a series of online courses delivered by the Indiana University Kelley School of Business.
In October, the Kelley School announced a partnership with edX to offer a three-course, self-paced personal financial professional certificate. The courses provide the building blocks of planning for financial security and personal success, such as managing personal cash and credit and planning for risk and retirement.
Brian D. Jellison
Last year, the Brian and Sheila Jellison Family Foundation made a generous $16 million gift to the Kelley School in support of several programs. Part of this gift is being used to support the financial literacy program which allows learners to audit the three courses at no cost.
The Kelley School will soon make the program available, without charge, to about 500 IU student-athletes.
Idalene “Idie” Kesner, dean of the Kelley School and the Frank P. Popoff Chair in Strategic Management, said the school is thrilled that so many have taken advantage of this resource at a time when there has been so much economic uncertainty due to the pandemic.
“Current economic conditions are a reminder of why it is important for everyone to have a basic understanding of personal finance,” said Idalene “Idie” Kesner, dean of the Kelley School. “Learning how to manage your finances for today and tomorrow is an essential step in building a more secure financial future for yourself and your family.
“We are grateful to the Jellison Foundation for supporting this initiative. Their support makes this the gift that keeps on giving by helping all of us learn how to build a more secure financial future.”
Brian D. Jellison, a 1968 IU graduate and a native of Portland, Indiana, created the foundation with his wife, Sheila, and their three daughters before he passed in November 2018. He had an exceptional 50-year career in business. He began his post-college career at General Electric and then went to Ingersoll-Rand, where he held senior leadership roles, including executive vice president.
In 2001, he became CEO at Roper and was promoted to chairman in 2003. During his tenure there, the 15,000-employee company transformed its business model and grew its market capitalization from $1.5 billion to more than $30 billion. Under Jellison’s leadership, Roper Technologies compounded its shareholder return more than 18 percent per year and significantly outpaced the growth of the S&P 500.
EdX is a leading nonprofit online learning destination and IU is among more than 160 member-universities delivering courses, including Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Kelley currently also partners with edX to deliver online master’s degrees in accounting and information technology management.