Family Tradition: Maddie and Max Meystrik thrive as leaders at the Trulaske College of Business

Maddie and Max Meystrik always knew where they wanted to go to college: the Trulaske College of Business at the University of Missouri. 

The siblings from Moberly, Missouri – who are both in the Cornell Leadership Program (CLP), Trulaske Student Ambassadors and members of the Alpha Kappa Psi professional business fraternity – applied only to Mizzou. After all, Tiger blood runs in the family. 

“What can I say, we both love Mizzou,” Maddie said. 

Older than her brother by three years, Maddie followed in the footsteps of her father and uncle by enrolling in the School of Accountancy’s 150-hour program, which combines a Bachelor of Science in Accounting with a Master of Accountancy in just five years. Along the way, she has completed three internships and secured a full-time position with KPMG’s tax department in St. Louis, where she will start after graduating in May 2025.

Max, a sophomore and proud "math nerd," is triple majoring in finance, mathematics and statistics with ambitions to enter the world of quantitative finance. His dream is to one day develop statistical models to interpret and predict stock market trends. Currently, Max works part-time at a local agricultural consulting firm, applying his skills in Python programming and data analytics. He also works as a self-employed magician in the summer, traveling across the state to put on shows in public libraries and other locations. 

In his free time, Max watches advanced math videos on YouTube, always eager to solve the latest calculus problem. 

“Hey, math is fun!” he said. “It’s all about solving problems, and who doesn’t want to solve problems?”

Taking the lead

Arriving as a freshman during the Covid-19 pandemic, Maddie quickly recognized the value of being a member of CLP, which provided her not only with opportunities to develop leadership skills and business acumen but also with an immediate community of friends. One of her most memorable experiences in CLP was participating in Tigers on Wall Street during her junior year – a life-changing, experience-centered learning opportunity she will never forget. 

Maddie had another transformative experience her sophomore year when she was selected to participated in the annual Deloitte FanTAXtic National Case Study Competition. It was her first dip into the tax profession – and she was hooked.

“It was an insane experience and the best experience-centered learning opportunity I’ve had at Mizzou,” she said. “It’s where my love for tax all started.”

Maddie further honed her leadership skills as co-vice president of membership for Alpha Kappa Psi. In this role, she worked with the executive board to plan and execute pledge week, then led weekly meetings for a group of 45 pledges.

“It took a lot of management and planning skills to pull it all off,” Maddie said. 

Max serves as a tri-director of employee relations for the Trulaske Leadership Conference as well as a class coordinator for his grade in TLC, focused on mentoring freshmen to help them navigate their first year and feel welcomed into the college community.

“Taking what I’ve learned from my mentors and implementing that myself has been a great experience because it’s helped me better understand what I truly appreciate in a mentor,” Max said.

Making memories

The Meystriks credit Mary Beth Marrs, director of CLP, for helping them adapt to college life and fostering their sense of belonging within the Trulaske community. 

“It’s rare to find someone like Mary Beth who cares that much about her students,” Max said. “She is a very busy individual, but any time I’ve asked to stop by her office or unexpectedly stopped by, she has always made the time for me, and I know that is the case with her other students as well. That’s invaluable.”

One of the Mestrik’s favorite Mizzou memories is rushing Faurot Field after the Tigers beat Kansas State. Though they didn’t go to the game together, they found each other in the final moments of the barn burner. 

“We didn’t plan it, but we happened to see each other and rushed to the field together,” Maddie said. “It was so much fun.”

Still, among their most cherished memories is spending countless hours together and with friends in the atrium at the Trulaske College of Business – hands down, their favorite spot on campus. 

“What I like about the atrium is you can go there and study and still be with all your friends,” Max said. “All the business students I know are super involved across campus and everyone has negative free time. But we can spend time together in the atrium and still get our work done. It’s a great space.”

Maddie makes a point of arriving 20 minutes early to her classes so she can catch up with friends in the atrium.

“The atrium is the perfect place to see people and say, ‘I haven’t seen in you in a week, let’s get coffee,’” she said.

M&M

Maddie and Max agree that the best part of being at Trulaske together is having a built-in best friend by their side.

“It’s been so much fun to watch Max enjoy the things that have meant so much to me at Mizzou,” Maddie said. 

Max said having his sister on campus has made his transition to college almost effortless. 

“It’s like having an automatic mentor,” he said. “She’s shown me the ropes, which has been invaluable because transitioning to college can feel overwhelming. Suddenly, you have all this new freedom, so having someone I trust to guide me through it has made all the difference.”