Moravian College is a unique place. It is the sixth-oldest college in America, was founded by a 16-year-old girl, and has a mutual fund worth $2.6 million that is managed by students.

A mutual fund is a portfolio of various stocks from various business sectors and segments. Moravian College’s mutual fund is managed by the student-run Amrhein Investment Club.

The fund has grown significantly since its creation in 1962, when Mr. and Mrs. Irving Amrhein donated $20,000 to Moravian College to foster an investment laboratory and establish an investment group to help educate students about stocks, bonds, other investment instruments, and the fundamentals of business.

One of the contributing motivations of the Amrhein’s donations was to allow students to manage an investment portfolio by investing real money in real time.

The club has been successful over the years. In 2017, the physical capital in the portfolio breached the 2.5 million-dollar mark and, later that year, exceeded $2.6 million.

Gravity can certainly apply to the stock market. The saying, “what goes up, must come down,” still holds true.

During the month of January in 2018, for example, the stock market was still roaring and investors were thrilled and pleased with the performance. However, during the first week in February, the markets began to slide and tumble. On Feb. 5 alone, the Dow Jones Industrial Average  plummeted more than 1,100 points. The markets continued to fall until they opened to positive gains on Feb. 9.

The Amrhein Investment Club also saw the value of its portfolio dip during that tumultuous week.. Across its four funds — income, small cap, balance, and growth — the total loss was approximately $225,000, which is close to one quarter of a million dollars.

The markets have since recovered and grown. The Moravian portfolio is looking to breach the 2.7 million-dollar mark in a few months.

You might be asking yourself: how do I get involved? How do I become a member?

The Amrhein Investment Club meets every Tuesday at 11:45 a.m. in PPHAC 116. The club is open to any and all majors. No prior investing experience is necessary and students who are active participants in the club may be eligible to receive .25 units in college credit at the completion of the semester.

The four previously mentioned funds all require separate meetings, which are held throughout the week. The personalized fund meetings allow members of the individual funds to research and discuss potential stocks to purchase, sell any potential holdings, and bring forth a wish list of stocks in which to invest in the near future.

The group operates on teamwork, and it is important that buying and selling presentations are put forth by the group. Anytime anyone would like to purchase or sell stocks, bonds, etc., the proposal is brought forward to the group, which votes either in favor or denial of the request.

“We want to reintroduce and invigorate the education aspect of the club more,” said club president Shun Yang, ‘19. “We want to give new and existing members the opportunity to learn more about investing and the stock market.”

This is real money, and not too many schools have funds as large as Moravian’s.

Alumni have used the club to leverage themselves as outstanding candidates in the job pool. In that way, the club gives students an opportunity to invest not just in the stock market but in their futures.