Mission
The Center for Financial Services (CFS) seeks to bridge theory and practice to promote a collaborative exchange of ideas on critical issues affecting the financial services. By leveraging Lehigh’s faculty and alumni, the Center aims to bring the latest developments in research and practice together to stimulate discussion and generate new ideas for education and knowledge in the field of financial services. In support of this mission, the Center oversees the Bosland Financial Services Laboratory (FSL) which serves as the vehicle for understanding, creating, and employing financial data and software on the Lehigh University campus.
The Center hosts conferences that bring together alumni, industry participants, academics, and regulators on a topic of interest. In addition, the Center will feature academic research that may be relevant to practitioners.
Advisory Council
The Center’s Advisory Council provides expertise to strategically guide the mission and direction of the Center. In addition, the Advisory Council will offer guidance to the Director on topics and sponsors for conferences and panel discussions, expanding the network of participants. The members of the council serve as a resource for activities encompassing continuing education, industry and student engagement, and networking.
Director
Kathleen Weiss Hanley joined the faculty in 2015 as the Bolton-Perella Chair in Finance and as the Director of the Center for Financial Services. From 2011 to 2013, she was the Deputy Chief Economist of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Deputy Director in the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis where she oversaw the integration of economic analysis into policy and rule-making across a broad range of topics in financial economics including the implementation of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act. In addition, she managed the Divisions research activities, data analytics and risk assessment initiatives. Prior to that time, she was a Senior Economist at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in the Risk Analysis section and a Senior Financial Economist at the SEC. She has been on the faculty at the University of Maryland and at the University of Michigan.