Nick Edels is a junior in Keough Hall studying Finance and Applied and Computational Mathematics and Statistics. Originally from Barrington, Illinois, Nick first fell in love with Notre Dame while completing a leadership seminar through the University’s Pre-College Program the summer before his senior year of high school.
“It was just the most amazing experience,” Nick remembers. “It was a real academic challenge, but I also felt this intense sense of community that I knew I wanted four years of which is why I started researching clubs on campus before I even started my freshman year.”
Now fully settled in, Nick has become involved in many campus communities including the Student International Business Council (SIBC), various finance and investment clubs, Keough Hall government, intramural sports, and more.
Service Trips and Moneythink
Of all his commitments, though, two complement each other in perhaps unexpected ways: his work with the Center for Social Concerns and Moneythink, a ND student-led mentorship program that engages high school students in South Bend to teach them about personal finance.
Nick’s journey to helping South Bend students through Moneythink first was sparked on a fall break trip organized by the Center for Social Concerns. Since freshman year, Nick has volunteered at The David School, a private high school for underprivileged and at-risk youths in rural Appalachian Kentucky. At the David School, Nick and a team of 8 students shadowed the high schoolers, talking to them about their experiences, while they did work around the school clearing rain gutters, painting patio furniture, and refurbishing bathrooms.
After visiting the David School that first year, Nick knew he wanted to return, this time leading the seminar.
“My first time, I had the best experience, interacting with the kids and learning more about their lives. I was kind of expecting them to be standoffish or guarded, but they were so open to sharing about their experiences and so caring when listening to mine. I felt like I really formed strong connections with the kids and I didn’t want that to be it. I needed to come back.”
For Nick, leading the seminar was an equally rewarding, though different, experience. As a leader, Nick found fulfillment in helping other students realize how special the David School is, just as his leader had helped him process the immersion his freshman year.
“I had this authority to shape the experience, which was really cool,” Nick explains. “We could have ideas of how to make our time there more valuable — for us and the kids — and instead of just talking about it, I got to make it happen. For instance, this time we decided to write letters to the students and we hosted a Q&A panel about college life. It was just nice to be able to make the most of the experience for everyone.”
Though Moneythink reaches highschoolers in South Bend rather than Appalachia, Nick’s found similar elements in that experience to his time at the David School.
Once a week, Nick goes to Riley High school to teach students about financial planning, explaining credit and debit cards, checking and savings accounts, investing, and more. The curriculum is created by a board of Notre Dame students, generating new lesson plans each week.
Just as he felt at the David School, Nick’s favorite part of Moneythink is the relationships he’s made with his students.
“One time a student told me that he kept all of his cash under his bed, because he didn’t understand how the whole checking and savings account thing works,” Nick recalls. “And I took the time to walk him through all the steps of how to set up an account, where he needs to go in the bank, what kind of identification he needs — all that stuff. And then the next week he came back and had actually done it! His money was no longer under his bed. He was actually earning interest on it and it was a lot safer. And I helped make that happen.”
Plans for the Future
After he graduates, Nick plans to work as an investment banker, but he wants to continue working with kids in one way or another.
“In high school, I started a tutoring company and coached chess. Over the summer, I was a tennis coach. I’ve run a few summer camps. Working with kids is just something I’ve always been involved in and something I’ve always enjoyed. Connecting with students and watching them tangibly grow is really rewarding and I can’t imagine I’ll ever grow tired of being a part of that force for good.”
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