Schools to get push on financial literacy
February 9, 2009
State Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso, visited Sageland Elementary School on Friday to share with students the five-year, community-driven project "Invest in the American Dream," which will introduce new curriculum to teach financial literacy.
Written by Adriana Gómez Licón , The El Paso Times
EL PASO -- When the global economic crisis affected many families in 2008, school districts and organizations saw the need to prepare children to confront the world of finance.
State Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso, visited Sageland Elementary School on Friday to share with students the five-year, community-driven project "Invest in the American Dream," which will introduce new curriculum to teach financial literacy.
"By 2013, high-school students will graduate knowing 10 financial literacy skills," Shapleigh said. "It is very important for kids to know how to use their money."
The curriculum will teach children from pre-kindergarten to 12th grade how to purchase a home, keep a savings account and be debt-free. Shapleigh said the curriculum will be incorporated into several school districts in the region by September.
Helping with the project is Junior Achievement of the Desert Southwest, a nonprofit organization that teaches youths about finances.
The group received a $10,000 grant from State Farm Insurance to reach more students and parents, as well as to recruit and train volunteers.
President Elizabeth Dahl said the organization has prepared a curriculum to enforce its mission of teaching children about personal finance. "It is imperative to educate these young people in financial literacy and stability," she said.
The Ysleta Independent School District has been one of the region's pioneers in adapting models that offer students hands-on activities to learn about finance.
Officials said they visited Sageland because it practices the microsociety program, which incorporates real-world offices and services like a postal service, newspaper, courts and banks.
"They relate what they are studying in the classroom to their careers," said Gilberto Moreno, a community advocate who has volunteered for the microsociety program at Sageland since its beginnings in 1993. "This is the best example of education reform."
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