The Department of Finance hosts academic seminars to facilitate faculty and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) student engagement and learning with scholars from peer schools. If you have any questions or would like to be a presenter, email: william_johnson@uml.edu.

Spring 2026

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
February 27Kerry SianiMassachusetts Institute of TechnologyThe Decision Window: How Budget Timing shapes Fiscal Policy

Fall 2025

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
September 19Nadya MelenkoBoston CollegeCustom Proxy Voting Advice
October 17Katharina LewellenDartmouth CollegeNo Margins, No Missing: The Effects of Immigration on the Hospital Sector
November 14Steven IrbeckUniversity of New HampshireWatching the Watchdogs: The Information Content of SEC Interactions

Spring 2025

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
February 7Michelle LowryDrexel UniversityCorporate Lobbying of Bureaucrats

Fall 2024

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
September 20Anh TranUniversity of ConnecticutUnveiling Mutual Funds’ Securities Lending Strategies: Value versus Volume
October 18Lauren CohenHarvard UniversityThe Economics of Aisle Crossing: Depolarizing the US Congress
October 25Rani HoitashBentley UniversityThe Alumni Effect: Unpacking the Influence of Executives and Non-Executive Former Auditors on Public Company Audits

Spring 2024

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
February 9Andrey MalenkoBoston CollegeVoting Choice
March 29Eric SoMassachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)Portfolio Recompositions to Achieve Higher Morningstar Ratings
April 19Michael WittryOhio StateResolving Estimation Ambiguity

Fall 2023

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
September 29Thomas ChemmanurBoston CollegeThe Entrepreneurial Finance of Fintech Firms and the Effect of Investments in Fintech Startups on the Performance of Corporate Investors
October 27Tong LiuMassachusetts Institute of TechnologyLearning by Investing: Entrepreneurial Spillovers from Venture Capital
November 17Anya MkrtchyanUMass AmherstEmployee Responses to CEO Activism

Spring 2023

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
February 3Michael GoldsteinBabson CollegeDo Firms Set Pension Discount Rates Strategically?
March 24Zhaozhao HeUniversity of New HampshireWho benefits from removing restrictions in labor mobility?
April 14Yadi WangUMass LowellManaging Less Redeployable Assets Through Better Employee Treatment

Fall 2022

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
September 16Yiming QianUniversity of ConnecticutMisconduct and Fundraising in Private Equity
September 22Charles WangHarvard UniversityGovernance Transparency and Firm Value: Evidence from Korean Chaebols
October 14Jason JiangTemple UniversityLawyer CEOs and Corporate Innovation
October 4Mengchao AiManning School of Business, UMass LowellBoard Centrality and Innovation Search Strategy
November 4Daniel BergstresserBrandeis UniversityDo Risk Premia Explain Dealer Markups in Municipal Bond Offering?

Spring 2022

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
April 29Eric YeungCornell UniversityThe Information Advantage of Industry Common Blockholders and Its Spillover Effect on Stock Prices Crash Risk
April 22Michael EwensCalifornia Institute of TechnologyLocal Journalism under Private Equity Ownership
April 15Matthew GustafsonPennsylvania State UniversityDoes Being Private Constrain Geographic Expansion?
March 4Tingting LiuIowa State UniversityClassified Boards: Endangered Species or Hidden in Plain Sight?

Fall 2021

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
December 10Huseyin GulenPurdue UniversityIntangible Capital in Factor Models
November 19Hieu PhanUMass LowellShareholder / Creditor Conflict of Interest and Corporate Social Responsibility
September 24Jung Chul ParkUniversity of South FloridaMigration Networks and Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) Decisions
September 17Peter HaslagVanderbilt UniversityCOVID-19 Migratory Response and the Municipal Debt Market

Spring 2021

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
April 30Paul LauxUniversity of DelawareThe Effect of Media-linked Directors on Financing and External Governance
April 23Xiaoding LiuTexas A&M UniversityShared Culture and Technological Innovation: Evidence from Corporate Research and Development (R&D) Teams
March 26Xiaoran NiXiamen UniversityModern Information Technology and Firm Acquisitiveness: Evidence from EDGAR Implementation

Fall 2020

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
October 30Linghang ZengBabson CollegeFirm-specific Shocks and Asset Reallocation Across Firms: Empirical Evidence
October 16Caroline FlammerBoston UniversityImpact Investing and the Fostering of Entrepreneurship in Disadvantaged Urban Areas: Evidence from Microdata in French Banliueus
October 2Phong NgoAustralian National UniversityFinancial Media as a Money Doctor: Evidence from Refinancing Decisions

Fall 2019

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
December 13Lingling WangUniversity of ConnecticutDisclosure Length and Disclosure Effectiveness: Evidence from the Compensation Discussion and Analysis (CD&A) Mandate
December 11Daniel GreenHarvard UniversityCorporate Refinancing, Covenants, and the Agency Cost of Debt
November 1Nataliya ZaiatsSuffolk UniversityShort Seller Attention and Corporate Customer News
September 13Namho KingBentley UniversityCommon ownership, price informativeness, and corporate investment

Spring 2019

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
April 19Jaideep ShenoyUniversity of ConnecticutLabor unions and product quality failures
March 22Mark EganHarvard UniversityArbitration with Uninformed Consumers
March 1Yijia (Eddie) ZhaoUMass BostonSyndicated Loan Liquidity: The Role of Bank Capital

Fall 2018

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
October 19Kristina MinnickBentley UniversityA Game of Thrones – Dynamics of Internal Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Succession and Outcome
September 28Leonard KostovetskyBoston CollegeDigital Tulips? Returns to Investors in Initial Coin Offerings
September 12Tong (Tony) ZhouSung-Yat-Sen UniversityInnovation Awards, Product Segmentation, and Stock Returns

Spring 2018

DateGuest SpeakerAffiliationTitle of Presented Paper
March 29Fred BereskinUniversity of DelawareSo Sue Me! Re-discovery of Patent Value through Litigation
March 1Debarshi NandyBrandeis UniversityThe Geography of Innovation and Innovator Flows: Do Unions Matter