From modest beginnings as a fledgling RSO, Blue Chips has evolved to become an organization that inspires the confidence to have given a $100,000 gift. A handful of students with a dream and an interest in investment have turned their club into a serious organization with a mission to provide students with the experience they need to achieve economic success.

It’s easy to write the members of Blue Chips off as amateurs who would do just as well with fake money. But there is nothing in the science of investment that stipulates one must be at least 25 years of age to make good investments or learn the basics of investing. Rather, one is never too young to gain this experience. Many students will graduate from the University feeling lost or scared about handling their own financial affairs once they have to live on their own. Blue Chips exists to teach, to acquaint, and to help people learn how to make smart investments.

The $100,000 donation came from an alumni who has been investing and saving money for 20 years with the intent of giving it to the U of C. No singular facet of the University appeals to every person. Whereas a pre-med might value a new children’s hospital, a UT alumni’s gift would go toward the arts. U of C programs are capable of excelling without alumni donations, but they can reach and improve a wide variety of student groups on campus. The Maroon hopes that the generous donation to Blue Chips will serve as a model to other alumni, encouraging them to donate and pledge money to whatever facet of the University is nearest to their hearts.