Davis Center for Portfolio Management
Davis Center High School Portfolio Competition
Each fall, the Davis Center sponsors a simulated portfolio competition among classes from several area high schools. Throughout the competition period, members of the Davis Center pay periodic instructional visits to the classrooms to teach the high schoolers about the stock market and the principles of investing so as to inform their trade decisions. Students in each class break down into teams, and those teams compete against one another as well as against the teams from the other schools.
About the Program
At the conclusion of eight weeks of trading, the top performing teams from each class are invited to UD to participate in the final round of the competition. Team finalists offer a PowerPoint presentation before a three-judge panel consisting of a local investment professional and two members of the Davis Center Leadership Team. The winners take home a roving trophy, and all finalists are treated to pizza and awarded a competition t-shirt.
This program benefits not only the high school students, but our Davis Center members as well. It is a long-held realization that the best way to understand a concept is to explain it to someone else. In their presentations to the high school classes, Center members develop clarity and confidence while strengthening their knowledge base and communication skills. As one Davis member said, "I learned how much I've learned!"
In the fall of 2019, five classes from four high schools, encompassing 115 students, participated in the Davis Center High School Portfolio Competition. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 program was abridged to include only instructional Zoom visits to classrooms.
