April is Financial Literacy Month

Celebrate Financial Literacy Month in April

On February 14th, students from Wadsworth Elementary School and Esmond Elementary School from Chicago had the opportunity to meet virtually with Congressman Jonathan Jackson (IL-01) as part of the SIFMA Foundation's Stock Market Game Capitol Hill Challenge, presented by the Charles Schwab Foundation.

The students are learning about the global capital markets and the importance of long-term saving and investing while developing integral workplace skills such as collaboration, critical thinking, improving their personal financial behanvior, and standardized test scores in math and economics.. The Capitol Hill Challenge allows Members of Congress to connect with schools in their districts and inspire and serve as role models. Students in Illinois are eligible to participate in the Stock Market Game at no cost due to the sponsorship of the Illinois Bankers Association.

New in-school bank opens in Clinton

First National Bank and Trust Company, along with the Clinton Community School District and Clinton Community Education Foundation, are excited to announce the student-run Maroons Branch at Clinton Elementary opened on Wednesday, January 18. The student bank is designed to introduce the economic concept of saving money early and reinforce this idea throughout the elementary, middle, and high school curriculum. In addition, the bank demonstrates that saving money should be part of a student’s future financial plan and increases parental involvement in children’s lives through banking activity.

This is the first in-school branch for First National Bank and Trust Company and 51 students participated in saving on the inaugural banking day. All 2nd through 5th-grade students will have an opportunity to bank every Wednesday morning. Twelve 5th graders serving as 'student bankers' will rotate weekly. Both bank employees and education foundation members will volunteer to assist with the student-run branch.

This student-branch structure and financial literacy curriculum are made possible by First National Bank and Trust Company's mission to reinvest 10 percent of its pre-tax income back into the community. The goal of the program is to provide students, K-12, with the knowledge to make sound financial decisions. Additionally, the program collaborates with school districts to promote financial literacy.

Pictured are classrooms from Wadsworth Elementary School and Esmond Elementary School from Chicago, representatives from the SIFMA Foundation, representatives from the Illinois Bankers Association, and Congressman Jonathan Jackson.

ABA Foundation Launches 2023 Financial Education Campaigns, Three-Year Initiative to Reach 5 Million Americans

The theme for this year's campaigns is 'Protecting Your Financial Future'

The American Bankers Association Foundation launched its 2023 financial education campaigns, calling on America’s banks and their more than two million employees to participate in these important industry programs and help more consumers achieve long-term financial stability. It also announced a three-year industry-wide commitment to reaching five million Americans with financial education courses through its campaigns.

The ABA Foundation offers four national initiatives designed to equip banker volunteers with the tools necessary to share essential financial knowledge in their local communities. In 2022, more than 700 banks participated in one or more Foundation programs. This year, the Foundation will roll out new program resources and guidance centered around its theme of protecting your financial future. The 2023 programs aim to help consumers access pathways toward financial success by empowering youth to invest in their future, promoting awareness about scams targeting people of all ages and helping older Americans plan for financial caregiving. All of the Foundation programs are completely free to both ABA member and non-member banks. Those programs are: Teach Children to Save, Get Smart About Credit, Safe Banking for Seniors and Lights, Camera, Save! video contest.

Teach Children to Save

The ABA Foundation’s signature initiative, Teach Children to Save, now in its 26th year, is a national campaign that encourages bankers to educate local K-8 students about money and real-world financial concepts through classroom presentations, virtual lessons, social media engagement and other outreach efforts. The ABA Foundation continues to bolster its program materials with versatile resources that can be leveraged for a range of learning environments.

While Teach Children to Save Day is celebrated on April 27, bankers are encouraged to promote financial education throughout the year.

Get Smart About Credit

Get Smart About Credit is a national program that helps bankers equip teens and young adults with personal finance knowledge and encourages the exploration of careers in banking. This year, the ABA Foundation will roll out new content on various scams targeting teens and young adults with tips on how to stay safe. Though the campaign is celebrated annually on the third Thursday of October, bankers are encouraged to give presentations and spread awareness throughout the year.

Safe Banking for Seniors

In addition to its youth financial education initiatives,the ABA Foundation also offers a collection of resources, including workshop materials, videos, social media content, guides and handouts, to support elders and financial caregivers as a part of its Safe Banking for Seniors program. Safe Banking for Seniors, led by banker volunteers nationwide, helps older customers, their families and caregivers understand and mitigate the risks of fraud and financial exploitation.

Curricula for Teach Children to Save, Get Smart About Credit and Safe Banking for Seniors are available in both English and Spanish.

Lights, Camera, Save!

Lights, Camera, Save! is a national video contest that encourages teens to create a video up to 30 seconds long that demonstrates the importance of using money wisely, with a particular focus this year on protecting one’s financial future. The contest kicks off in August with individual banks hosting local competitions and is open to teen filmmakers of all experience levels. The national grand prize winners will be announced in November and are eligible to win up to $5,000. The public will help narrow the field of competitors via Instagram in the first round of national judging.

Bankers can register for ABA Foundation programs for up to two years and receive turnkey resources, real-time customer support, and ready-to-use promotional and communication materials. Again, there is no cost for banks that register to participate in any of the Foundation programs.

Interested banks can register at aba.com/FinEd or call 1-800-BANKERS for more information.