A Financial Economics and Social Computing major from the Mount’s cITe program has co-founded a space for Mount students to develop a better understanding of the stock market.
Jeffery, better known as “JJ,” is the co-founder and president of MSJUSIF (Mount St. Joseph University Student Investment Fund). MSJUSIF is a club which, as JJ explains, aims to provide education to all students curious about and interested in the stock market.
The initial moment that set JJ on his journey of thinking about creating a finance club started with a conversation with his dad and his dad’s cousin, a wealth manager, who asked JJ if there was a finance club at the Mount. After doing some research, he found that the faculty advisors were already in the process of creating a student investment fund. In addition to this inspiration, JJ felt a personal conviction to start the club as well, and was thrilled to learn that this was already in process.
“I wanted a place to talk about and learn about the stock market with other students and get some real-world practice or learning on investing,” he explains.
Getting MSJUSIF off the ground was not without its challenges. “The biggest challenge that I faced at the beginning of MSJUSIF was membership and membership retention,” says JJ. As a new club, finding people who were not only interested in joining the club, but who were actually wanting and able to stay in the club, was something that JJ sought to work through. However, he adapted to growing club retention, and MSJUSIF has been able to continue to expand as a result.
Over time, JJ grew more comfortable with his role in managing the club with time and experience. “My confidence has changed,” he states.
From Idea to Impact: Leading the Mount's Investment Club
The moment that JJ became the president of MSJUSIF was incredibly fulfilling. The voting was conducted on an online poll that started on a Thursday and ended on a Monday night, with the news to be announced on the following afternoon. “At the meeting, it was announced, and there was a cheer,” JJ recalls proudly. “I felt a sense of pride that I hadn't had in a long time.”
Looking at what he has accomplished with MSJUSIF, JJ reflects on his achievements: “I have seen the club grow from an idea in my mind to a group of people that I would like to now call friends; Learning and developing into better business people.”
The small size of the Mount made this accomplishment especially rewarding. “The sheer size of the Mount (or perhaps the lack of size) makes it vastly different than doing something similar at an OSU, UC, OU, ETC,” he explains. “I see people I know, and they already know the good news, and so do people around me, like a random passerby.” With the Mount’s small size, good news gets around quickly and celebrations are plentiful. JJ is thankful to the Mount for supporting him through his journey of expanding and becoming president of MSJUSIF.
“The Mount supported me through this journey by allowing me to be late to my volleyball practices to make sure that I could conduct my meetings effectively without rushing,” he says. JJ also thanks the faculty advisors of MSJUSIF for their handling of the club’s election. “The faculty advisors of the club let the campaigning of the students run itself to ensure a fair election.”
From Balance Sheets to Bold Moves: JJ's Takeaways
In May through Aug. 2025, JJ served as a commercial loans intern at Kemba Credit Union. He primarily conducted site visits, which involved visiting buildings with outstanding loans to ensure that they were still standing and being used in the manner intended. JJ also served as a finance intern in Mount St. Joseph University’s Finance department under Chief Financial Officer Jeffrey Briggs MBA, CPA. Here, he helped build Excel sheet templates for several project budgets.
“These co-ops have helped me grow and find out what I enjoy and don't enjoy about the financial world,” JJ reflects. “I have developed excel skills I didn't know existed in order to be obtained. I also have become better about thinking about all of the ramifications of the actions that are—or could be—taken in a business.”
As a word of advice to all fellow students at the Mount with ambitions to do something spectacular, JJ says, “Strive for your goals and take a chance—or many chances if necessary, do not think with what ifs, because you will never know how people will react and what the turnout will be unless you try!”
With his sights set forward, JJ hopes that MSJUSIF is able to grow in membership. “We would love to see this grow in the next year,” he says on behalf of his fellow club members.
If you’re interested in learning more about or joining MSJUSIF, don’t hesitate to send an email to JJ at Jeffery.Rennekamp@msj.edu!
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