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Financial Literacy – A Life Skill

May 22, 2025

We believe that financial literacy is more than a math lesson—it’s a life skill. Many high school students open their first bank account and make important financial decisions such as whether to take on student loans for college. Understanding what real-world expenses are and how to budget money are critical skills our scholars will use every day.

That’s why we partnered with Golden 1 Credit Union and Franklin Templeton to host a hands-on budget simulation workshop to give our scholars experience juggling income and expenses after high school. We were thrilled to be featured in the Washington Post – check out this excerpt from the article:

“Even when students pursue classes in school, they’ll find wide variation. California’s stand-alone requirement, for example, won’t start for two more years, but in some of its schools, like Sacramento Charter High School, teachers or career counselors have already launched smaller exercises for students. In February, the school hosted a one-day financial wellness challenge, with students going to different booths to learn the costs of essentials such as transportation, housing, child care and food. Then they had to deduct those costs from a punch card that listed their salary.

Edie Park, who ran the food booth with fellow senior Mariah Bowman, called the exercise a “reality check.” Both noticed how some of their peers underestimated food costs, failed to verify their receipts and overspent at other booths. They now say they have become more intentional with their money as they gear up for college.

Junior Jordan Collins credits the workshop with getting him to boost his savings to his first-ever $1,000, which made him “extremely happy.”

We’re excited to teach our scholars about personal finance – learning how to budget and manage your money is a key part of having a secure financial future!