Kennesaw State’s Graduate College partnered with FLOCK Specialty Finance in July to create a new research lab where students will analyze consumer borrowing data.
The FLOCK Specialty Finance lab will be part of the Analytics and Data Science Institute within KSU’s Graduate College, led by the Associate Dean and Director of the Analytics and Data Science Institute, Jennifer Priestley.
“We selected the Analytics and Data Science Institute as our partner in this effort because of its focus on applied analytical research and access to Ph.D. students in Data Science,” said Michael Flock, founder and CEO of FLOCK Specialty Finance.
“The partnership will help us better evaluate the debt portfolio financing and will help our partners improve performance in their existing portfolios,” Flock said. “Equally important, Dr. Priestley and her team of Ph.D. students help our industry better understand the impacts of public economic data, seasonality and other macro trends on our debt portfolios and on consumers’ ability to repay outstanding debt,” he continued.
Priestley said the lab is still relatively small and is currently “more of a proof-of-concept.” She said that only one graduate student is currently working within the lab but she hopes to work with FLOCK Specialty Finance to bring larger projects to the research lab and involve more graduate students.
Morgan Tamayo, a second-year master of science and applied statistics student, said she is currently working as the lead on a project for the research lab to help develop an app that car dealerships will be able to use as a tool to determine whether or not to provide a loan to a consumer.
FLOCK provided the ADSI with multiple data sets that Priestley said are “related to helping people at the lowest end of the credit spectrum purchase automobiles.” FLOCK is asking the university to develop risk scores that will be able to tell them the probability of consumers paying back their car loans.
Tamayo said she plans to finish the risk factors in the next few days, and once she finishes, Priestley said they plan to start developing the app. Those who determine loan amounts at FLOCK’s car dealerships will be able to simply plug in a few pieces of key information into the app and the risk probabilities will be able to determine whether or not the dealership should offer the consumer a loan.
The ADSI was first chartered in June 2017 and is now part of the Center for Statistics and Analytical Research. The institute currently houses the Ph.D. program in analytics and data science.
The CSAR houses 10 other research labs, with five of them funded through the private sector. There are currently 21 students in the Ph.D. program in analytics and data science, and these students are required to engage in an applied research project or research lab as part of their degree.