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AltaOne teaching youth not to go 'mad' with their money |
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Monday, 10 March 2008 |
 A Jill Kinmont Boothe School student simulates paying a car bill at one of several stations set up during AltaOne’s recent Mad City Money workshop. The event was aimed at introducing the youth to important money management skills. Photo by Mike Gervais By Mike Gervais
Register Staff 3-8-2008
Bishop area youth were given important life skills training and a glimpse into the complexities of money management recently when AltaOne Federal Credit Union brought its latest educational effort to Jill Kinmont Boothe School.
The financial institution, which hosts a variety of money management seminars for both youth and adults, seized the opportunity to introduce JKBS students to fiscally-sound practices through Mad City Money.
The workshop asks each student to assume a “life” complete with a monthly income, car payments, student loans and other financial responsibilities, as well as a budget.
“This is a hands-on seminar where the kids are learning to budget,” said AltaOne Community Education Specialist Tim Allen. “It really combines math and some social skills.”
According to Allen, some of the students that participated in the program already live on their own, and have to manage their own budget. Others will be in that position in a few months.
At the start of the program, participants are given an “About Me” card that assigns them an occupation, a monthly net salary and a list of bills that must be paid.
For example, one student at JKBS was given a job as a lawyer who makes $4,226 a month. That “life” also came with a spouse who brings home $2,097 a month. The student was required to pay $300 a month in student loans, $200 a month in medical insurance and manage a $7,581 credit debt.
On top of that the student was also responsible for supporting a 3-month-old child.
To simulate managing their money and their lives, the students stopped at different booths that represented some of the financial aspects of life, “such as housing, utilities, food, cars and insurance,” Allen explained.
At each booth students were required to make financial decisions that would fit within their allotted budgets and meet their needs.
“The goal was to have $100 in savings and meet all the other bills,” said Allen, and if they could accomplish that, they were rewarded lunch on AltaOne and the school.
AltaOne already has plans to bring the Mad City Money program to Lone Pine this May and to Mammoth Lakes in the near future.
In addition to Mad City Money, Allen is working on a substitute teaching program, where certified substitute teachers from AltaOne, like Allen, can fill in for economics teachers and help teach students about money management, budgeting, credit and insurance.
“Whether or not a student gets a high school diploma, they’re going to get a job and have to deal with money,” and as a certified credit union, AltaOne is able to provide some assistance, said Allen.
On the same front, Allen said that AltaOne provides seminars to help educate adults on the changing world of finances. He said that budget management and rebuilding-credit seminars are helpful classes for adults, but what many don’t realize is the risk of identity theft. With that in mind, AltaOne also hosts a number of seminars for adults outlining ways they can protect themselves from identity predators.
For more information about AltaOne or its money management seminars, call Tim Allen at (760) 371-7164. |
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Last Updated ( Monday, 10 March 2008 )
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