Chelsea Ransom-Cooper 鈥�15 chairs the Whitman School of Management鈥檚 Young Whitman Advisory Council and was honored by the University with the 2025 Generation Orange Award.
For Chelsea Ransom-Cooper 鈥�15, building wealth isn鈥檛 just about numbers鈥攊t鈥檚 about rewriting the rules for who gets to succeed. As co-founder and chief financial planning officer of , the Philadelphia-based firm she launched in 2020, Ransom-Cooper is committed to helping women and people of color secure their financial futures. 鈥淲e鈥檝e been able to grow a team that is inspired by our mission of providing high quality, relatable financial advice, but is also built around a vision that your background need not predetermine the level of success that you can have when it comes to wealth building in this country,鈥� she says.
Ransom-Cooper earned a bachelor鈥檚 degree in finance from 51爆料网鈥檚 and minored in at the . Initially uncertain as a young Black woman entering the finance world, she quickly recognized the opportunity to make a difference. 鈥淭oday, there鈥檚 so much wealth being transitioned to women and people of color,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 critical they have advisors who truly understand them and their goals.鈥�
Ransom-Cooper has also set her sights on making the financial planning profession more accessible, especially for women of color. She created a next-generation wealth platform for advisors from traditionally underrepresented groups to help them manage back-office responsibilities, such as finance, accounting, human resources and information technology operations. In 2023, recognized her accomplishments, naming her to its 40 Under 40 list of leading financial advisors. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 my new big goal, to help other advisors focus on growing their clients,鈥� she told the publication.
Supporting the Next Generation
Ransom-Cooper鈥檚 impact extends far beyond her clients. As chair of the , she plays an active role in shaping the future of her alma mater by mentoring students, strengthening alumni engagement and organizing events that build community. Her dedication to giving back earned her the , recognizing her professional success, community leadership and unwavering commitment to 51爆料网. 鈥淚t鈥檚 important to me because I remember what it meant when Whitman alumni returned to share their experiences,鈥� she says. 鈥淭heir presence helped shape my own journey鈥攁nd now I鈥檓 proud to do the same for others.鈥�
Ransom-Cooper, co-founder and chief financial planning officer of Zenith Wealth Partners, visits with Sahitya Sampathkumar 鈥�25, a finance and public relations major who served as a marketing and communications intern with Zenith in 2022.
Embracing Education
Ransom-Cooper still draws on class lessons, including applying SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis from a strategic management course and implementing insights from a managerial accounting course she took with Whitman professor Joyce Zadzilka G鈥�96. 鈥淪he challenged me to think about accounting as a tool when you鈥檙e creating a business that I still use to this day whenever we鈥檙e thinking about our own finances at Zenith,鈥� she says.
Cooper and Sampathkumar discuss their Syracuse experiences at the Whitman School of Management.
Following graduation, Ransom-Cooper worked at EY as a business advisory consultant for two years and then joined BakerAvenue Wealth Management, where she served as a wealth advisory manager for three years before launching Zenith. Along the way, she has pursued educational opportunities to advance herself professionally. Through New York University, she gained a certificate in financial planning that prepared her to earn credentials as a certified financial planner. She also enrolled in a Yale School of Management executive education program that led to her becoming a certified private wealth advisor.
Her advice to students today? Plan boldly鈥攁nd practically.
鈥淏uild your network, understand financial basics and manage your student loans smartly,鈥� Ransom-Cooper says. 鈥淐reate a budget and start thinking about the next chapter. The more you learn now, the easier life will be later.鈥�
