The Securities Analysis Center at the Lundquist College of Business at the University of Oregon welcomes Ben J. Salm as its first managing director. Salm assumed his new role on January 22.

The center offers students a unique perspective on the securities industry with a curriculum that emphasizes both finance and accounting, exposes students to valuable experiential learning, and capitalizes on faculty excellence in research.

According to Lundquist College of Business Dean James C. Bean, Salm is well-suited to be the first managing director of the Securities Analysis Center, a new specialization program that will launch this fall.

"Ben brings vast real-world experience and insight to this exciting new program," said Bean. "He has first-hand knowledge of and an abiding passion for the international investment industry, and he understands what it takes to succeed in the field."

Salm has more than fifteen years of experience in investment research and portfolio management. Most recently, he founded Blue River Capital, an investment advising and consultancy firm in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The firm serves established money managers, small business owners, and individuals, specializing in investment management and research for clients throughout the United States.

Salm says he's looking forward to launching the new Securities Analysis Center as the next chapter of his successful career. He adds that his industry background, overseas experience and his own graduate studies allow him to understand the needs of the center's constituents, including students, faculty, employers and industry partners.

"This is an important opportunity to contribute my experience towards what will be an outstanding education for our finance and accounting students, encouraging them to add to the growing investment industry in Oregon," said Salm. "There is tremendous potential and support here at the university and it will be gratifying to guide one of only a handful of such programs in the country."

Salm earned his bachelor's degree in business and computer science at the University of Oregon in 1984 and a master's degree in applied economics and finance from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1992. Before founding Blue River Capital, he was vice president with State Street Global Advisors in Boston and London. While there, he was responsible for managing a $4 billion investment portfolio on behalf of European and Middle Eastern investors, as well as overseeing the associated client service, research and new product development.

Salm says the Securities Analysis Center is receiving tremendous support from industry partners in the Northwest--especially Portland--as well as the East Coast and California. He notes that he and Securities Analysis Center faculty are putting the finishing touches on a refined curriculum that reflects a sharp focus on the securities market in the U.S. and abroad. Two new faculty appointments are expected in the Lundquist College of Business's Department of Finance to help support the center.