Sources: Greg Foote, 913-636-4517, gfoote@k-state.edu;
and Laura Liston, 913-908-7479, lliston@k-state.edu
Web site: http://sfa.cba.k-state.edu
News release prepared by: Katie Mayes, 785-532-6415, kmayes@k-state.edu

Friday, Feb. 13, 2009

K-STATE STUDENTS MEETING WARREN BUFFETT FACE-TO-FACE MARCH 27

MANHATTAN -- Members of the Kansas State University Student Finance Association are heading to Omaha, Neb., March 27 to meet with Warren Buffett, one of the world's richest and most successful investors.

Buffett, chief executive officer and chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, will be hosting the K-State organization along with a handful of student groups from other schools. The meeting will include a two-hour question-and-answer session with the students at Berkshire Hathaway's headquarters, followed by a two-hour lunch at one of Buffett's favorite restaurants. The visit also will include tours and sessions with top executives at two Berkshire Hathaway subsidiaries: Nebraska Furniture Mart and Borsheim's, a jewelry store.

Greg Foote, senior in agricultural economics, Bucyrus, and the fixed income manager of the K-State Student Finance Association, wrote a letter to Buffett's personal secretary asking for the meeting with the well-known financier and philanthropist. The association was initially told that it could be put on a waiting list for a visit next year.

Association leaders responded that that would be great, but pointed out that they were also only three hours away and could be ready to fill in should another school cancel. Foote also made regular contact with Buffett's assistant, which paid off.

"We are humbled that we were selected to meet Mr. Buffett," Foote said. "We're going to go up to Omaha and show him what K-State is all about."

Laura Liston, senior in accounting and finance, Shawnee, and president of the Student Finance Association, and said that the trip's purpose is not only to learn all they can from such a successful and well-respected businessman, but to become one of a handful of schools invited back annually.

"I hope this visit will become a mainstay in the Student Finance Association's schedule of events," Liston said. "Only high-caliber students have the chance to meet with Mr. Buffett. This trip will provide a wealth of knowledge."

Other schools scheduled to visit with Buffett this year include the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Columbia University, New York University, the University of Chicago, Northwestern University and Duke University.

The K-State Student Finance Association is a student-run organization for finance majors, but is open to any K-State students with an interest in the financial industry. Group activities include an annual trip to New York to visit the floor of the New York Stock Exchange to meet with a wide range of professionals on Wall Street. They also regularly interact with finance professionals in Kansas City, Chicago, Boston and Denver to bolster their classroom education in finance.