BMCC Team Wins First Place at College Fed Challenge

For the third year in a row, a team of Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC/CUNY) students has earned First Place in the Maiden Lane division of the College Fed Challenge, a college-level competition sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

During the final round of the competition held virtually November 13, the BMCC team bested three senior colleges—Lehman College (CUNY), New Jersey City University and the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy.

The 2020 BMCC team was mentored and led by Business Management Professors Ioannis Tournas and Julian Schroeder.

An awards ceremony held November 18 featured a presentation by John Williams, the New York Fed President. Williams visited BMCC in December 2019, and gave a special presentation at Fiterman Hall that was attended by hundreds of BMCC students, faculty and staff.

“Our students continue to impress and excel at the Fed Challenge,” said BMCC Acting Provost Erwin Wong. “It is a testament to the commitment and dedication of both our faculty and students. We are extremely proud of their accomplishments. Congratulations and kudos to them.”

The College Fed Challenge is a competition designed to bring real-world economics into the classroom. Teams play the role of monetary policymakers by analyzing economic conditions and recommending a course for monetary policy. Teams then present an economic analysis, and engage in a vigorous question and answer session with judges who are New York Fed economists and experts on monetary policy.

This year’s BMCC team consisted of Dayan Avila (Economics), Oscar Corzo (Business Administration), Alexandre St-Cyr (Financial Management), Kin Yee Gung (Accounting), Alex Hill (Financial Management), Sulay Restrepo Maroulis (Business Administration) and Stavors Paganos (Financial Management).

“By winning first place in the prominent Fed Challenge competition the students proved their training and academic knowledge,” said Professor Tournas. “The experience opens the door for excellent letters of recommendations as well as admissions and transfer scholarships to well established colleges and universities. Everyone is encouraged to join our weekly academic meetings.”

Online meetings that focus on Economics and The Fed Challenge take place virtually on Wednesdays during club hours between 2 and 4 p.m.

BMCC students who may be interested in joining the Fed Challenge discussions are encouraged to contact Professor Ioannis Tournas at itournas@bmcc.cuny.edu or ytournas@gmail.com and include FED CHALLENGE in the subject line.