Luke Schneider ’18: ‘On a Trajectory to Succeed’

portrait outside
Luke Schneider ’18

Luke Schneider graduated from Stetson University last weekend with a degree in finance, a business of his own, a patent on his invention and a number of clients in major league sports.

“I attribute that to the entrepreneurship program here at Stetson and the mentors I’ve had really pushing me to go after my dream of working for myself and remaining in the sports industry and really striving for greatness, to be significant in my field,” said Schneider, who received a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance.

“So, this idea I had, I made a reality. Now I’m excited for the future, to see where it takes me,” he said. “… I am looking to grow my business in the next year out of school, see where it takes me and make Stetson proud.”

Schneider invented a cleat cleaning tool, and has clients in Major League Baseball and the Professional Golfers’ Association. Now, he’s working on the National Football League.

A rising star in Stetson’s Joseph C. Prince Entrepreneurship Program, he won First Place at Stetson’s Fall 2017 Business Pitch Competition for the cleat cleaning tool, used by athletes in major outdoor cleated sports in the U.S. and Europe.

Dr. K.C. Ma in the Roland George Trading Room
K.C. Ma, Ph.D., C.F.A., assists a student in the Roland George Trading Room on the third floor of the Lynn Business Center.

He also joined Stetson’s competitive Roland George Investments Program. Students in the program manage a real portfolio with $3.5 million in stocks and bonds from a trading lab on the third floor of the Lynn Business Center. They are known for consistently beating market-performance benchmarks, under the direction of K.C. Ma, Ph.D., C.F.A., director of Stetson’s Sarah George Investments Institute and the Roland George Chair of Applied Investments.

K.C. Ma

“I really found a home here in Stetson, striving to become a part of the Roland George Investments Program,” Schneider said. “The program has really been a benefit to me. Dr. Ma and all my classmates have pushed me to achieve more in the finance industry, more than I thought I could, and really pushed me to acquire the knowledge I needed to be successful in the industry.”

In five years, he hopes to be a successful entrepreneur, or a businessman involved in the sports or finance industries. He has some big meetings coming up with major merchandisers and with his clients as he works to market his cleat cleaning tool.

dirty cleats sit on the grass next to a soccer goal
Luke Schneider holds a patent for a cleat cleaning tool that he invented.

“It has put me on a trajectory to succeed and change sports and how athletes take care of their cleats and stay safer and perform at a high level,” added Schneider, who served as vice president of Stetson’s Club Golf Team at one time.

He says he thrived at Stetson because of its close-knit community of professors and students, and he sees the close personal connections as being uniquely Stetson.

“The reason I came here was because of the community feel,” he said. “You really get to know your professors and your fellow classmates.  Everyone really comes together and pushes you to be the best you can be. I think that something that Stetson offers that others don’t is that personal connection and actually sharing in the alumni network. I’ve had numerous alumni approach me — and me approach them — and be willing to help out, offer some advice. I think that’s really unique to Stetson.”