#75: Carl Ackermann

Every major and department at Notre Dame is filled with professors that students love and professors that students loathe, but few majors are as lucky as those students in the College of Business that have the opportunity to take class with and learn from Professor Carl Ackermann (or Carl, as he insists his students call him).

Carl is hailed by his students as the best professor at the University because of what he does both inside and outside of the classroom.  Inside the classroom, students love the meticulous and interesting way in which he explains the material.  He engages his students in ways that aren’t forced or awkward and makes sure that each student understands every topic before moving on.  He makes class fun by joking with or about the students, and he brings an unparalleled enthusiasm to every class he teaches.

Even more remarkable than his teaching ability is his capacity to get to know each and every one of his students.  Despite the fact that he teaches over 600 students in a semester, Carl makes sure to know each one of their names and even something about them.  He develops personal relationships with his students that go beyond his ability to help them learn finance or how to plan their personal finances.

Carl’s students all have personal stories about their relationship with the teacher and the things he’s done for them.  Whether it be postponing a test for a student whose favorite sports team has a big game the night before, driving a student to the bus station as he is leaving campus at the end of the semester, attending a student’s bookstore basketball game, or calling a student to tell them that they did a great job on his exam, Carl goes out of his way to foster relationships with students and know how he can help them.

Carl Ackermann might be a great finance professor to his students, but he is certainly a great friend and mentor that cares about his students far more than most professors.  He teaches students how to accumulate wealth, and also encourages them to think about ways to use that wealth to give back to others.  He understands Notre Dame Students, and helps his students, and it is because of these things that he is beloved by his students years after they have taken his class.