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Contact:     Leah Szarek, Chief External Relations Officer
                  202-838-1300
                  lszarek@msrb.org

MSRB OFFERS HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS IN NYC AND CHICAGO A VIRTUAL INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC FINANCE CAREERS IN DC

Washington, DC – For the tenth year, the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) was proud to host Municipal Finance Day in partnership with the Municipal Forum of New York’s Urban Leadership Fellows Program for graduating New York City high school students. This year, the MSRB expanded its support of students interested in careers in public finance by hosting a second Municipal Finance Day in partnership with the Chicago Summer Business Institute’s program for Chicago high school students. The MSRB hosted virtual panel discussions on regulatory and policy careers in public finance on July 20, 2022, for the New York City students and on July 22, 2022, for the Chicago students.

Both New York’s Urban Leadership Fellows Program and the Chicago Summer Business Institute support underserved high school students in their respective cities by providing paid summer internships to help them explore careers in finance and finance-related fields.

“We are delighted to continue our long-standing partnership with the Municipal Forum of New York and to extend the reach of our program to students in my hometown of Chicago,” said MSRB CEO Mark Kim. “I hope to expand this initiative and encourage other communities with similar youth development programs to reach out to us for future partnership opportunities. Working together, we can build a stronger municipal securities market by creating more opportunities for young people to learn about careers in public finance where they can get involved in investing in their communities, towns and cities.”

Students had the opportunity to hear from members of Congress, local and state governments and financial regulators about their career paths, their current roles, and what a typical day looks like for them. In addition to Kim, speakers for Municipal Finance Day included:

  • Representatives Byron Donalds (R-FL) and Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD)
  • Dave Sanchez, Director of the Office of Municipal Securities at the Securities and Exchange Commission
  • Bonnie Bowes, Director of Fixed Income Regulation at the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority
  • Chicago CFO and MSRB Board member Jennie Huang Bennett, City
  • Darryl Street, Associate Treasurer for Debt, and Nancy Fox, Senior Policy Analyst, Economic Development Finance, Office of Finance and Treasury for the District of Columbia
  • Joe Aguilar, Chief Investment Officer, Office of the Illinois State Treasurer
  • Craig Slack, Deputy Treasurer - Chief Investment Officer, Office of the City Treasurer for Chicago

About the Urban Leadership Fellow Program

In 1992, the Municipal Forum of New York initiated the Urban Leadership Fellows (ULF) Program, a paid summer internship program for graduating high school students. The purpose of the program was to introduce talented young men and women from diverse backgrounds to the municipal finance industry and inspire them to pursue careers in the field. In 1996, Futures and Options was hired by the Municipal Forum to manage the ULF Program with a view to expand and deepen its educational component. This year, the program is operating as an externship in a hybrid format. The ULF externs receive extensive training in both career-readiness and specific industry skills, work closely with professionals in the municipal finance sector, and engage in meaningful projects.

About the Chicago Summer Business Institute

Founded in 1991 to provide paid summer internships for Chicago high school students and to introduce them to the financial services sector, the Chicago Summer Business Institute’s goals have always remained the same: to give participants an incentive to continue their education while preparing them for the business world.

About the MSRB

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) protects and strengthens the municipal bond market, enabling access to capital, economic growth, and societal progress in tens of thousands of communities across the country. The MSRB fulfills this mission by creating trust in our market through informed regulation of dealers and municipal advisors that protects investors, issuers and the public interest; building technology systems that power our market and provide transparency for issuers, institutions, and the investing public; and serving as the steward of market data that empowers better decisions and fuels innovation for the future. The MSRB is a self-regulatory organization governed by a board of directors that has a majority of public members, in addition to representatives of regulated entities. The MSRB is overseen by the Securities and Exchange Commission and Congress.

 

The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) protects and strengthens the municipal bond market, enabling access to capital, economic growth, and societal progress in tens of thousands of communities across the country. The MSRB fulfills this mission by creating trust in our market through informed regulation of dealers and municipal advisors that protects investors, issuers and the public interest; building technology systems that power our market and provide transparency for issuers, institutions, and the investing public; and serving as the steward of market data that empowers better decisions and fuels innovation for the future. The MSRB is a self-regulatory organization governed by a board of directors that has a majority of public members, in addition to representatives of regulated entities. The MSRB is overseen by the Securities and Exchange Commission and Congress.

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