In a cozy two-story brick building across from Stapp Lawn sits the Center for Business and Financial Literacy, nestled between several other buildings on the street. Within the warm, welcoming house with the aroma of fresh coffee wafting through the air is Dr. Dava Dorjsuren, associate professor of business.
Originally from Ulan Bator, Mongolia, Dorjsuren graduated from CU in 2009 with a degree in business administration with an emphasis in economics, and later a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in 2011. Dorjsuren later completed her Ph.D. at Texas Tech University.
Dorjsuren started the Center for Business and Financial Literacy in 2018 after a leave of absence from the university.
“My goal was to create a financial planning major that would train financial advisers,” Dorjsuren said. “But then I realized the general body of students needed a lot more help with general financial literacy, like how to budget.”
Dorjsuren teaches Financial Wellness at Campbellsville University, a general education class that is newer to the program. This class teaches students the basics of budgeting and financial literacy in the real world. Dorjsuren wanted CU to have a finance class that is “down to earth” and “realistic” that students can use in their daily lives.
Dorjsuren added that she wants the Center for Business and Financial Literacy to be a warm, welcoming presence at CU, saying she wants students to have a place to feel safe.
“I just wanted to have space where kids come and ask me questions one-on-one,” Dorjsuren said, “Instead of asking in a big, hundred-person workshop.”
Everything in the current building has been bought from private donors who support the center. Their goal is to be self-sustaining and to make their own money, according to Dorjsuren.
The Tiger Fair Trade store is also within the center, although it is currently being moved to East Broadway Street. The store is a business where students can sell handmade items on-site, making their own money to help support themselves through college. Dorjsuren understands that college is incredibly expensive, having been a student herself, and wants to help students out by letting them sell their goods.
A large closet full of suits and other business attire sits in the upstairs of the building. This is known as the “business closet,” a community closet for students who need formal clothes for job interviews. This will be their fourth year having the business closet, according to Dorjsuren.
Another service offered by the Center for Business and Financial Literacy is assistance with tax filing. From January to April, both students and community members can visit in via appointment and have their taxes done, which costs around $70 to $100. Dorjsuren wants students to be especially aware of this service. In addition to this, the center for Business and Financial Literacy offers real-life experience for accounting students, allowing them to help with the tax process through IRS internships.
The late Campbellsville University professor Dr. Ralph Tesseneer, along with his daughter, Susan Tesseneer Walters, and her husband, Campbellsville University Board of Trustees member Joe Walters, were the main donors for the establishment of the center.
Board of Trustees Member Joseph Walters said he met Dorjsuren as a student, and she became like family to him and his wife. He hopes that through the center, students will learn financial responsibility.
“We got to know her and her family, even as a student,” Walters said. “I just hope students learn to think about financial responsibility and how to do things well.”
Former CU student Rachel Mbabazi, who worked at the Center for Financial Literacy during her time at CU, said working with Dr. Dorjsuren was an invaluable experience for her.
“I worked for three years at the Center for Business and Financial Literacy,” Mbabazi said. “Working with Dr. Dorjsuren was a blast. I have learned so many things from her and the center. She taught me how to save the money and how to count the money from our small show we had.”
Mbabazi is now a teacher, and credits Dr. Dorjsuren with teaching her about grading and how to work with her new major in education.
“Working with Dr. Dorjsuren made me want to change my major because of how she used to teach me interesting thing about business, such as savings and counting,” Mbabazi said. “But I [also] love teaching. I enjoyed working at the center and working with Dr. Dorjsuren.”
The center is open from Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and is located on 522 North Hoskins Road in Campbellsville.
