McDonald’s CEO headlines UC's Alpaugh Awards

It was here that the fish sandwich was invented, in 1963, to respond to the city’s Roman Catholic patrons who give up meat during Lent; the city is home to the largest Ronald McDonald house in the world; and it even has a bridge, the Daniel Carter Beard Bridge, colloquially dubbed “The Big Mac” bridge, for its similarity to the restaurant chain’s golden arches.

Little wonder, then, that the president and chief executive officer of McDonald’s, Chris Kempczinski, a Cincinnati native son, was a perfect match to give the virtual keynote speech at the University of Cincinnati’s Alpaugh Family Economics Center 2021 Awards ceremony.

Kempczinski is a graduate of Indian Hill High School, and his father, Richard Kempczinski, was chief of vascular surgery at UC Health Medical Center.  

“Education and training can unlock a world of potential,” Kempczinski says in a video address celebrating teachers whose efforts bring financial education to school children. The Alpaugh Center, Kempczinski noted, “has undertaken the responsibility for teaching these skills to the next generation.”   

For more than four decades the Alpaugh Family Economic Center has worked to teach economic and financial literacy, reaching elementary school children and teachers across the nation. The center is home to an award-winning online financial program called $martPath, engages in partnerships for the financial education of the larger community, and is home to a research team to serve businesses and governmental partners in the region.

The center began as a teacher training initiative of the Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce in 1976. In 1977, the center was incorporated and established a permanent existence at UC.