GARY | Do you want to learn how to trade stocks?

Thanks to the Indiana University Northwest School of Business and Economics, you will soon be able to simulate the experience of being a trader on the Chicago Stock Exchange.

The Gary school will unveil its simulated trading floor program to the public tonight at a 5:30 open house and dedication ceremony. The school plans to use its program to promote business education for its students, the surrounding community and local teachers.

"This is a wonderful program because it will allow people who do not know that much about the stock market to learn how it all works," Anna Rominger, the dean of IU Northwest's School of Business and Economics, said.

The trading floor at the school includes two digital stock tickers, a large television screen tuned to the financial news channels, and a trading room where people can play the market using the simulated trading program. On Wednesday, the creator of the trading program will give guests hands-on demonstrations of the software.

At the ceremony, officials from the school will also explain how the simulated trading floor program will be used in the school's business program and its Center for Economic Education, which works to expand financial literacy in Northwest Indiana. Rominger said the floor will also be available to local businesses that want to train their employees in asset management.

The trading floor, which is called the School of Business and Economics Trading Floor, is on the first floor of the Dunes/Medical Professional Building at IU Northwest, 3400 Broadway, Gary.

Trading stocks is a particularly useful skill in the Chicago area because the Chicago Stock Exchange is the third largest stock exchange in the U.S.