UConn Today – Wells Fargo has partnered with the University of Connecticut’s Center for Neurodiversity & Employment Innovation to introduce free neurodiversity workshops for corporate America. The new workshops, an academic and corporate collaboration, aim to provide instruction to key leaders from Fortune 500 companies to help design neurodiversity initiatives end-to-end.
Author: Scott Slater III
Alum Roars into Children’s Toy Market with Colorful Plush Dinosaurs, Plans for Complementary Books
UConn Today – As a UConn student, Lyla Andrick ’24 (CAHNR) created about 2,000 brightly colored dinosaur stuffed animals in her dorm room, while also juggling schoolwork and a job at a veterinary clinic.
The plush animals have become so popular that the small New England boutiques where they are sold can’t keep them on the shelves.
Ask the Experts – Best Banks for Personal Loans
Wallethub – Q: Do you think credit unions and online lenders can compete with the best banks for personal loans?
Credit unions often offer better terms on all of those collateralized loans. I do not know how competitive they are on unsecured loans. Without researching it, I assume they do not offer such loans or limit them. The risk on unsecured loans is quite high, regardless of credit ratings. Large banks have the reserves and the legal teams to take on that risk; I suspect—but do not know—that credit unions are reluctant to take those risks. They do not have the reserves and the legal teams.
While credit unions vary widely in how they are run, I know that my credit union offers car loans three points or more lower than banks and some other credit unions. I also know that its equity lines and mortgages are lower than those of major banks. My bank offers equity loans fully four points higher than the rate on those from my credit union.
On the other hand, I have higher returns on a savings account (at 4.65%) at a commercial bank with no minimum level, much higher than returns offered at any credit union of which I am aware.
The simple reality is that people have to spend some time looking around and considering the options. As my personal experience outlined above suggests, credit unions often offer very competitive rates and services, including credit cards, but for specific products some banks or other credit unions will offer superior terms. However, it is almost always the case that the major banks offer the lowest rates on savings and CDs and insist on the highest rates for loans of any sort. They have the market power so long as people are not willing to invest the time to find better deals.
Accessory Overload
Slate – I love stuff, especially stuff that feels like it might add an element of personalization in a society that so often subscribes to materialistic monoculture. It’s evident from the trinkets that live on my desk, in the depths of my closet, and in my childhood bedroom. But lately I’ve been wondering if accessorizing has gone too far.
Beloved Family Dog Inspired South Windsor Family to Become Entrepreneurs
UConn Today – The Cecchini family’s entrepreneurship story began with an extraordinary love for their English Bulldog, Tank.
Unlike his two canine brothers, Tank suffered from unrelenting food allergies and painful ear infections. The South Windsor family developed a healthy, all-natural, grain-free dog biscuit just for him. When friends and family kept asking for samples, they recognized they were onto something big. They created their business, The Dog Bone LLC, in 2016.
New Rules Govern Residential Property Sales Beginning in mid-August
UConn Today – If you’re in the process or buying or selling a home, or think that will be part of your near-future plans, then the recent National Association of Realtors (NAR) settlement has likely caught your attention.
As part of a class-action lawsuit settlement, the NAR agreed to some changes impacting compensation and representation beginning Aug. 17. The sale or purchase of a home is considered one of life’s biggest stressors. Understanding the new opportunities and requirements of the settlement can put real estate clients at ease.
UConn Today interviewed School of Business professor Kristen Haseney, an attorney with extensive experience in the industry. Below she answers questions about what’s new and what to expect.
Partnership, Collaboration, And Clarity
Mirage – As a child, Kumanga Andrahennadi would often walk through her village to the water’s edge and talk to the sea.
She grew up in Tangalle, a coastal town in southern Sri Lanka. There’s no land between Tangalle and the continent of Antarctica, Andrahennadi explains, only the sea.
Raised in a Buddhist family, Andrahennadi learned the practice of mindfulness from her parents, and in her youth, whenever she felt the heaviness of the situation surrounding her, she would lean into her own mindful connection with nature and go to talk with the sea.
Ageism In The Workplace: How It May Be Affecting More Than Just Older Americans
AOL – Amidst all the talk about diversity and inclusion, ageism in the workplace is sometimes overlooked. There’s a reason for that.
Just in the last year, the American Psychological Association dubbed ageism “the last socially acceptable prejudice.” They define ageism as “discrimination against older people because of negative and inaccurate stereotypes.”
As we take a look at ageism as a dimension of diversity, I think it’s necessary to tweak that definition a bit.
Ask the Experts – Car Insurance in CT
Wallethub – Q: Is it fair for car insurance companies to consider gender or age when setting premiums?
A: Car insurance, typically though not always, costs more for men than women. This is because insurance companies have concluded that male drivers, particularly young male drivers, are statistically a greater risk than female drivers. Insurance companies are looking for ways evaluate their risk as effectively as possible. That said, there are already a small number of states, such as California, Massachusetts, and Michigan, which prohibit using gender to set premiums. More states might adopt those provisions in the future. Regarding age, insurers may charge more for very young and very old drivers because of their greater risk. An open question is how car insurance premiums will change for transgender and nonbinary people.
Data centers could transform local CT communities, but some officials are hesitant
CTPost – Efforts to improve Connecticut’s position as a potential host for data centers appear to be stuck in neutral at the moment, despite an increased focus on artificial intelligence and how the two are intertwined.