Penn State Behrend’s class of 2017 is ready to make its mark on the world!  We’re proud of our students and the things they’ve accomplished and learned while here at Behrend. Over the next couple months, we’ll be introducing you to a few of our remarkable seniors who have overcome challenges, pioneered new technology, participated in important research projects, and left an impression at Penn State Behrend.

Today, we’d like you to meet Patrick Kress:

Major: Finance

Certificate: Financial Planning

Hometown: Waterford, Pa.

On choosing to major in Finance: I really like helping people and I’ve always been good with numbers, so being a financial planner gives me the ability to combine the two and make a living while helping people reach their retirement and finance goals.

Spring break spent in service: I went on the Alternative Spring Break trip to San Francisco with Reality Check this year, and it was one of the greatest weeks of my life. I loved giving back and I highly recommend current students try an ASB trip.

Proudest accomplishment at Behrend: My junior year, I was given the Kenneth L. Spencer Award, which recognizes outstanding achievement by a student majoring in Finance or Accounting. It was an honor on its own, but the most humbling part was seeing the other students I was honored with at the different awards ceremonies. They were peers who I looked up to throughout my time at Behrend, and I was proud to be in their company.

Campus involvement: I have been involved in many organizations in my time at Behrend, but two that really stand out are my time as the treasurer and then vice president of the Student Government Association and my role as secretary of the Lion Ambassadors. I’m also the president of the Financial Planning Association. My very best memories at college all stem from student organizations. I can’t tell you how much I will miss them and the people involved when I graduate.

On managing real money for the School of Business: I’m currently the lead analyst of the industrials sector for the Intrieri Family Student-Managed Fund. I’m proud to say we’ve done pretty well with it. Working on the fund has been a really valuable hands-on learning experience, especially in light of the fact that the stakes are high because we’re managing real money.

What you’d be surprised to know about him: I was born with an extra lower vertebra; most people have 33, but I have 34. It is my go-to ‘tell us something interesting about you’ at icebreakers.

Advice for current students: Professors are not here to make your life harder. They have a passion for what they do and chose a career where they can help students learn and become the best version of themselves possible. Once I understood that, I stopped viewing faculty members as people who gave me too much homework and began seeing them as resources and role models. Every faculty member at Behrend wants you to be successful and they will help you in any way they can, so don’t be afraid to ask questions and learn from their wealth of knowledge and experience.

After his graduation in May, Patrick plans to work as an advisor-in-training at his family’s business—Kress Financial Services, a retirement planning and investments firm.