Baker Gives Big, Again; This Time to U of MD

Kent Baker, a dean emeritus of TRSA’s Executive Management Institute (EMI) and an award-winning 50-plus-year academic in finance, has – for the second time this year – made a significant gift to an alma mater, in this case the University of Maryland. Baker’s gift will create a center for behavioral finance at the Robert H. Smith School of Business.

UMD President Darryl J. Pynes said the new center and faculty jobs funded by Baker will put the Smith School at the forefront of a developing field, according to news reports. “Dr. Baker’s generosity will provide our business students with unsurpassed learning opportunities, reinforcing the critical value of a top-flight public institution of higher education, while advancing faculty research that solves business problems,” Pynes said.

Baker’s gift, which includes an endowed chair in Behavioral Finance and related faculty support, will bring together leading scholars in financial research and innovation to the Smith School. They’ll work to advance understanding of how human psychology – not just rational economic calculations – shapes financial decision-making.

Baker, who received an MBA in finance, an M.Ed. in educational administration, and a DBA in finance from the University of Maryland, College Park, MD, said he was delighted to back this project at his alma mater. “The Smith School has a wonderful finance faculty and great researchers in the area of behavioral finance,” Baker said. “It’s vital for understanding how emotions and biases affect financial decisions and using that to be a better decision-maker. I couldn’t identify a better place than the Smith School where that research could occur.”

Baker, who retired last month after 49 years as an EMI instructor, made a comparable gift to the American University (AU) earlier this year. The university didn’t disclose the size of the gift but acknowledged that it surpassed the previous record of $15 million from an individual donor. The gift will fund AU’s School of Education, which will be renamed the Linda A. and H. Kent Baker School of Education in honor of Baker and his late wife, Linda. Click here for details. Baker completed two doctoral degrees at AU: one in Educational Administration and Organizational Development; and another in Counseling and Student Development.

A university professor at the Kogod School of Business at American University, Baker has previously held faculty and administrative jobs in the business schools at Georgetown University and the University of Maryland. His honors have included Scholar/Teacher of the Year at AU. He was also the Southern Finance Association’s 2019 distinguished scholar.

Baker has published more than 220 peer-reviewed articles, 130 publications in professional outlets and 350 book and article reviews. He has also authored 45 books, including textbooks such as Understanding Financial Management: A Practical Guide (2005). In 2015, he received a USA Best Book Award in the personal finance/investments category for The Psychology of Financial Planning and Investing. Click here for details.