After a successful 30-year career that spanned the financial industry, Darwin Hopwood, ‘76 BA Economics and ’10 EMBA, thought his working days were nearly behind him. But as he completed UNLV’s Executive MBA program, he found an opportunity to strengthen the university’s connections with the commercial banking industry and simultaneously fulfill his longtime desire to teach.

Over the last eight years, Hopwood has used his business connections to develop a thriving commercial banking program as a lecturer at Lee Business School. The program relies on the input and guidance of a professional advisory board to prepare students for careers in the industry. As a sign of his success, he was recently named the Commercial Banking Advisory Board Faculty Fellow.

And, he’s not finished. Earlier this year Hopwood was named co-director of UNLV’s new Institute for Financial Literacy and Wellness. Its mission is to improve the lives of individuals and families by empowering them to achieve short- and long-term financial well-being.

Where are you from originally?

I would say mostly I'm from here. I was born in Southern California but moved to Las Vegas when I was seven years old. I went to UNLV as an undergrad, and when I graduated, I accepted a job in Reno and lived there for 13 years. Then I moved to Salt Lake City where I lived seven years and then moved back to Las Vegas in 1996. So, for 27 years, I've been back.

What drew you to UNLV as a student?

It was the place that was financially viable for me to go. I didn't want to borrow a lot of money, and I qualified for in-state tuition — so, a lot of the things that probably bring many of our students to UNLV now.

As a graduate student and a business owner, the EMBA program worked for my schedule. And, I was interested in more of a connection with the business school and the business community. 

What brought you to UNLV as a faculty member?

I'd been in the financial industry for more than 30 years at that time and thought I was wrapping up my career when Mike Sullivan, a professor in the finance department, called and asked me if I'd be interested in teaching an investment class. I’ve always wanted to teach, so when the opportunity came up eight years ago, I took it. 

A big reason I wanted to come back to teach was that I saw the value that an education can provide to somebody with experience to actually run their business better. I wish I would have known some of these things I have learned from teaching when I was running my own business, too. 

Since you took the position as a lecturer your role has evolved beyond the classroom. Tell us about that.

When I was first interviewing to be an adjunct professor, I said one of the things I was interested in working toward was connecting the business community and the business school specifically in the area of banking. This was the first seed for the commercial banking program, which now includes an advisory board of leaders in commercial banking. We are able to work directly with industry leaders to better prepare graduates for jobs in commercial banking because of these connections.

What project are you working on right now?

I'm really proud to be involved with the creation of the new Institute for Financial Literacy and Wellness. I think there's just a lot of good work to be done.

Financial literacy is the knowledge of the information and the tools needed to achieve your financial goals. The level of financial literacy in our country and our community is just not very good, and there's lots of things we can do to help build that. As someone who worked in the financial industry for a long time, I was a little taken aback that many people didn’t know things that I had taken for granted. 

Can you tell us more about the vision for the center?

The Institute for Financial Literacy and Wellness came to be because it’s a very big priority for President [Keith] Whitfield. There are four main elements: We will focus on career planning, budget setting, access and costs of credit, and protecting your assets once you have them. We will cover some simple things that can help improve people’s lives by improving financial literacy and helping them find a way to achieve their financial goals.

I am the co-director of the institute alongside Zach Goodwin, executive director of financial aid and scholarships at UNLV. 

What financial literacy resources are currently available at UNLV?

In Lee Business School we offer FIN 111 and FIN 112, and both fulfill a general ed requirement for critical thinking, which means students of all majors can take the courses. This semester we had 10 sections with 600 students all filled, so there is a great need for the program.

The UNLV Graduate College has quite a bit of financial literacy information for graduate students that we are working to make more widely available. We are also working on workshops for students, faculty, staff, and alumni who either don’t take the classes or want more information on specific topics.

From an outreach side, we've contacted and got enthusiastic responses from Nellis Air Force Base, the county, the city, Junior Achievement, and these are all entities that want to be partners. Also, there is a partnership with the Academy of Finance at Clark High School, and a teacher there who is teaching our class for dual credits.

What classes are you teaching this semester?

I'm teaching FIN 111 – Achieving Financial Independence, and a banking course, FIN 440 – Seminar in Commercial Banking. 

What’s the greatest success you have had since you started teaching at UNLV?

We've placed quite a few people in jobs through the banking program. The program includes four courses in banking, one of which is a for-credit internship. We've placed regulators at the FDIC, we have one in LA, one in Boston, and one in Seattle. We have also had several students go through management training programs and get hired as credit analysts. 

What is something people would be surprised to learn about you?

I played rugby for 11 years. 

What was the last book you couldn't put down?

Thomas Sowell’s A Conflict of Visions. I was so fascinated that I immediately read it a second time when I finished it because it was complex enough that I wanted to know that I'd gotten the overview. I'm going to read it again. 

What are you most thankful for this year?

I’m really thankful for the opportunities to do all the things I get to do at UNLV. I mean, I get to work in my passion. I've had a long career. I've always enjoyed my work. I've worked in banking. I worked in bank regulations. I worked in investments. I had my own business for 18 years. And this may be the most fulfilling of those careers.