DECATUR, Ill. – Millikin University senior Danny Lack’s Big Blue experience has been all about growing his skills and getting the opportunities to put those skills into action. His college adventure has been centered around the studies for his Finance major, which has, in turn, provided him with the skills to step out into the world of business as a leader and an entrepreneur.
“I came to Millikin with a strong passion for personal finance wealth management, and I wanted to be a financial advisor when I came into college. One of my favorite professors, Dr. Michael Osei, has many projects, including a financial management project where we evaluated a company's present and future value using their cash flow statements and other financial statements,” Danny said. “That was a very nitty-gritty accounting side of Finance. I also built an investment portfolio within Dr. Osei’s class. A lot of his projects have been super applicable (outside of the classroom) yet challenging and rewarding. To this day, I still use the portfolio tracker based on what we did in this class.”
As a Managing Partner in Millikin University Performance Consulting (MUPC), Danny has gained first-hand experience managing projects, such as building web pages for Decatur-area non-profits and businesses and providing web hosting.
“One of my favorite projects was to build a data analytic dashboard for (Decatur non-profit organizations) Paw Print Ministries and Workforce Investment Solutions. Using Google Data Analytics, we built these professional web-based data reports analyzing their traffic, their bounce rate, what landing page they are going to, and how much time they are spending on each page. We organized that in a cohesive way, and we presented it to their board,” Danny said. “Another great opportunity is that the Dean of the School of Business, RJ Podeschi, advises and supervises the venture, but it's up to the leadership team and the consultants in the team to drive forward, make it profitable, and grow the business.”
This past summer, Danny gained valuable wealth management experience while interning as an Associate Financial Representative at Northwestern Mutual in Chicago. He met with clients about financial planning, insurance, and investments to aid in planning for their future.
Danny is originally from Champaign, Ill. and was already connected to Millikin through his older brother, Sammy Lack, who wrestled for the Big Blue.
“My brother Sammy was a Marketing major and had an excellent experience on the wrestling team. He loved his student-athlete experience and Millikin provided excellent Performance Learning opportunities,” Danny said. “Millikin was also close to home and I'm a big family person. I feel like it just fit all those boxes, and that's what I was looking for.”
Another critical piece of Danny’s college decision was to continue his baseball career, and he has enjoyed his four years on the Big Blue Baseball team, earning College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) Academic All-Conference honors twice.
“My experience has been great. I've been able to build many friendships and work hard at something,” he said. “I think everyone on the team is really focused on their goals to win, and being in that environment has been cool.”
Last spring, the Big Blue posted a 29-16 record, winning a share of the CCIW regular season title and making a trip to the NCAA DIII Tournament.
“Coming here freshman year, we won the CCIW conference the previous season, so that was our goal every year. As a team, we worked hard, and it was not something that had just happened overnight,” Danny said. “It took years to accomplish with so many different moving parts and so many different teammates working on their abilities, while also building a cohesive team. When we won, it wasn't given to us. It was all hard work, and it was all earned.”
Danny has also combined athletics and business into his own company, Daniel Lack Productions, LLC, which produces video and social media content for several Big Blue teams.
“I came to Millikin having very little knowledge or experience with video editing, all I knew was that I just really enjoyed it. I was able to take a digital photography class, and I was able to gain more skills in video editing and filming. I would post my own videos that I would make based on my passions,” Danny said. “I was asked to film media day for the softball team, and I thought, wow, this can be a market and a service I can provide. I got my own LLC for free through Millikin's Center for Entrepreneurship, and it was a great opportunity. I think Millikin does a great job supporting student passions.
“I think Millikin does a great job of giving you the athletic experience while also providing you with a great academic experience. Millikin provides so many Performance Learning opportunities, and there is so much to be involved in.”
