CONCORD, N.H.– With sponsorship from NH Federal Credit Union and St. Mary’s Bank, more than 600 eighth grade students from Rundlett, Bow, Gilford and Chichester Middle Schools participated in real-life decisions to teach them financial skills at the CU 4 Reality Financial Literacy Fairs held over two days at New Hampshire Technical Institute.
The program uses an in-class curriculum during the school year to teach participants important skills that will equip students to handle money responsibly, set and adhere to budgets, and avoid the pitfalls of spending more than they make.
The CU 4 Reality Financial Literacy Fair is a day-long event where students see how career selection impacts their financial well-being and their life choices. At the CU 4 Reality Fair, students create a spending plan based on a career and salary researched in school, then they juggle needs versus wants to make sure they are living within their means. Participants meet with representatives for auto sales, utilities, housing, insurance, retailers, and others. Students soon understand the real expenses they will face in adulthood and the choices they need to make to make ends meet and avoid falling in to debt.
“Teaching our youth - our future consumers and members - the basics of budgeting and personal finance is an invaluable lesson,” said Polly Saltmarsh, VP Financial Education & Business with million NH Federal Credit Union “Today, we work with many people who need assistance getting out of debt and making ends meet. We believe that teaching young people today the basic steps involved in building a personal spending plan can help prevent future troubles. The skills they learn and employ in this program are not often taught in the classroom, but, everyone needs them. We believe we can make a real difference by imparting these skills and lessons before students begin getting jobs and making spending decisions in the real world.”