By Mary Katherine Brost

The Darr-Davis Investment Advisory Board, Collegiate’s investment club and fund, is in its last year of their three-year competition. In 2021, the club reset its funds back to $100,000 per team and began the next stint of competition. Team Davis is led by presidents Braden Felts (‘24) and McKenna Boardman (‘24), Team Darr is led by Bolling Lewis (‘24) and Quinton Sullivan (‘24), and Team Cochrane is led by Ben Brackett (‘24) and George Simonton (‘24). Darr-Davis allows students to use real money in order to learn more about investing and the stock market. Club members experience real-life consequences, as they have to make educated decisions for each stock, giving students an extraordinary learning opportunity.

Team Davis: Photo credit: Kate Nanavati.

Darr-Davis began in 1992, after ​​Mr. and Mrs. J. Harwood Cochrane wanted to honor two Collegiate students, Catherine Davis (‘89) and Elizabeth Darr (‘89), who died in a car accident in 1990. Cochrane originally gave money to the club in order to compete against him, but after students continuously received higher returns, Cochrane decided that the students should compete against each other. For the next few years, two teams of Juniors and Seniors competed against each other, along with trying to outperform the S&P 500. 

Another goal of the club is to support other clubs around Collegiate. At the beginning of each year, club presidents can ask the Darr-Davis Allocations board for money for various club needs, and the earnings from the funds are doled out to clubs. A large percentage of funding goes to clubs that have extensive travel as part of their clubs’ missions. 

In 2021, after a flood of applications, Darr-Davis added another team to the former two-team format. The three teams would be divided as Team Darr, Team Davis, and Team Cochrane. Upper School economics and government teacher Rob Wedge, faculty sponsor of Darr-Davis, explained that the club might be too big and too separated from each other. Wedge expressed that, “Each team has a different faculty sponsor and presidents with different investment philosophies, so it gets difficult to manage all of that.”

It is now the final year for the competition, and currently Team Davis is in the lead, with around $83,000. Team Cochrane is in a close second with about $82,000, while Team Darr is at $71,000. In years past, the three teams’ portfolios have exceeded beyond the original $100,000, but due to the state of the stock market for the past three years, it has been harder to break even. Issues such as COVID-19, inflation, the war in Ukraine, and higher interest rates have all influenced the stock market. However, all three teams seem to be making a comeback but most likely will not be able to break even by the end of the year. Luckily, not earning the $100,000 back will not affect the school or the club, because of how much the club has made over the past 30 years. 

This year, Wedge emphasized that each team should discuss and decide on an investment strategy and philosophy. He wanted each team to have a strong set of beliefs in why they invest in certain stocks rather than others. Wedge explained that, “Good investors have a philosophy that drives their thinking and a guiding principle rather than just chasing returns.” He included that famous investors such as Warren Buffet have been so successful because of a strong set of beliefs that guides investments. In the past, teams have just jumped into pitching and selling presentations before actually deciding on investment strategy. 

At the end of this school year, the club will reset, and each team will start back at $100,000 for the start of the new competition next fall. The club will hold interviews in the spring for new members, and the sponsors will select new presidents for each team. The team that wins will not receive a prize; just bragging rights over the other two. Currently it’s not determined yet if there will continue to be three teams, or if the number will be reduced back to two.

After being in Darr-Davis for the past three years, I have a completely new outlook on investing and current events. I have seen firsthand how world events can affect the stock market in both positive and negative ways. I love the club both for the interactive aspect of buying and selling stocks, along with the challenging task of picking when the right time is to sell and buy. Boardman explained that she loves the club because “it inspires the next innovators of our county with a creative and compelling experience.” Darr-Davis is an outstanding experience, and I am grateful that I get to be a part of it. 

Featured image credit: palmbeachgroup.com.