UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — As part of Penn State’s 2020 spring commencement activities, Evan Toomey will represent the Department of Economics in the College of the Liberal Arts as the department’s student marshal.
In response to the growing coronavirus pandemic, orders from the state government and recommendations from global public health organizations, Penn State will hold its spring 2020 commencement ceremony via livestream on May 9. The virtual ceremony will recognize all Penn State undergraduate students and all graduate students in the Penn State Graduate School.
Toomey, a Paterno Fellow and Schreyer Scholar, will graduate with bachelor of science degrees in economics and finance. His faculty marshal is Russell Chuderewicz, teaching professor of economics.
Since his first semester, Toomey became heavily involved in the Penn State Economics Association (PSUEA), an organization of students who are passionate about economics and aim to grow both academically and professionally outside of the classroom. He held several leadership positions, including fundraising coordinator and vice president of finance, before being elected president in December of 2018.
Throughout his time in PSUEA, Toomey placed emphasis on volunteering and helping others. He led a team of students to Shaver’s Creek to clean up garbage and help repair trail bridges, mentored and helped members with career fair practice and job/internship searches, and facilitated study sessions. As president, one of his main outreach initiatives was to develop a small scholarship for a PSUEA member in need of financial assistance.
In addition to his work with PSUEA, Toomey was a member of the Paterno Fellows Student Advisory Board and a teaching assistant for several economics courses including intermediate macroeconomics and money and banking. In 2019, he was selected as one of four students to represent Penn State at the Rotman International Trading Competition at the University of Toronto.
Last summer, Toomey interned at Vanguard, an investment management company, in the fund financial services department as a global fund accounting intern. The summer prior, he served as a research intern at Emerald Asset Management.
Toomey believes that his liberal arts education gave him an edge during the application process for internships and jobs. “I had a large advantage due to my writing and speaking skills that were developed through the diverse curriculum,” he said. “Whether it was a cover letter or introducing myself at a career fair, I knew I was putting forth a great product. While interviewing, the problem-solving skills I learned from economics and my liberal arts education were paramount. I directly applied those critical thinking techniques to interview questions in order to stand out compared to others.”
After graduation, Toomey will be working as a data service analyst at BlackRock, an American global investment management corporation and the world’s largest asset manager, in Wilmington, Delaware. He hopes to continue his education in the future by pursuing a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation and eventually receive an MBA.
To students in the College of the Liberal Arts, Toomey offered the following advice.
“Take full advantage of all the relationships and resources the College of the Liberal Arts presents to its students,” said Toomey. “For example, in my first week of classes when I was a freshman, I introduced myself to all my professors in their offices. One of the professors ended up being my choice as my faculty marshal due to the close relationship we formed. The same goes for the Career Enrichment Network. Their guidance in the fall of my freshman year and throughout my four years helped me attain my goals. All liberal arts students should pay them a visit.”
This is the 15th in a series of stories on the 24 student marshals representing the College of the Liberal Arts during the spring 2020 commencement activities.