Jimmy remembers back to his school days when they learned how to balance a checkbook. Many teens and young adults aren’t in that situation today. They do not know what to do when it comes to their finances, such as making a budget or writing a check.
According to one published study, 87% of teens admit they do not know a lot about personal finances. A survey by Junior Achievement shows only 47% of teens say they’ve worked with Mom and Dad to come up with a budget, and 33% say they do not use a budget.
Teens from the study that say they do not use a budget say they are uninterested or that “budgets are for adults.” Junior Achievement also reports that 76% say the best time to learn about money is in school. However, only 29% reported financial literacy programs in place.
Fortunately, there are programs on Delmarva that teach financial literacy. Jayme Hayes, President of Junior Achievement, and Sarah Guy, Associate Director of the Business Economic and Community Outreach Network at Salisbury University.
Jayme says that money management is not just for adults. Credit card debt, a job, and crippling student loans can all be avoided with early education. JA Financial Park helps students build a foundation upon which they can make intelligent lifetime financial decisions.
They couldn’t offer this program without the help of Sunrise Rotary. One of the rotaries area of focus is education and literacy and they believe this is key component of that for students.
