On Veterans Day, Illinois Tech honors all of the brave individuals who have served to protect our country and the rights of the American people. In honor of those who have dedicated themselves to service, Illinois Tech presents its 2025 Veterans Day celebration with an in-depth sit-down interview with Stuart School of Business Dean Rich Klein and Illinois Tech Life Trustee John P. Calamos Sr. (ECON ’63, M.B.A. ’70), a United States veteran who received the Distinguished Flying Cross for his service in the Air Force during the Vietnam War. Calamos is also the founder, chairman, and global CIO of Calamos Investments and author of the New York Times National Bestseller The Sky’s the Limit: Lessons in Service, Entrepreneurship, and Achieving the American Dream.

With an introduction from Illinois Tech’s John and Mae Calamos Endowed Chair in Philosophy J.D. Trout, please enjoy this open discussion where Calamos details the biggest lessons he learned from the time he was a stock boy in his parents’ grocery store, to his service in the Vietnam War, to his journey to becoming a legend in the world of investing.