finEDge fall 2020 newsletter

UChicago Financial Education Initiative

Fall 2020 newsletter

NEWSLETTER | FALL 2020

TEACHER SPOTLIGHT
Students Take Ownership

Rich Nolan discusses how he uses finEDge.

"The course provides a good framework for students to take ownership of their own financial well-being. They talk about their own personal values, goals, attitudes, and how they can affect their decision making. They take a lot out of it and understand that they will need this information in the 'real world.' This class teaches actual skills needed in the real world, no matter what subject area you study." — Rich Nolan

FOR FAMILIES AND FRIENDS
Announcing Talking Cents!

Talking Cents cards

We are excited to launch Talking Cents, conversation cards designed to break the taboo of talking about money by facilitating casual conversations between families and friends. Talking Cents empowers families and friends to consider their own financial attitudes, values, and beliefs and how they are shaped by different circumstances and previous financial experiences. With no right or wrong answers, the goal of the cards is to normalize conversations about money.

PROJECT UPDATE
CPS finEDge Leadership Cohort

New for the 2020–21 school year, the Chicago Public Schools Department of Social Sciences and Civic Engagement and the UChicago Financial Education Initiative have launched a first of its kind pilot of a financial education curriculum to evaluate how to strengthen student agency in financial literacy and decision-making for Chicago’s youth.

WATCH NOW
New Video on Quality Financial Education Access

Financial system video

In an increasingly complicated global economy, financial education is an essential academic subject. However, quality financial education is rarely available, meaning most students leave school unequipped to make informed financial decisions.

We invite you to watch our new video that explains the current state of financial education in classrooms across the United States, what high-quality financial education looks like, and why teaching sound financial decision-making is so critical to our students.

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION
Financial Education Is Not Enough

Feet following arrow

Good financial education can provide an essential foundation of knowledge and decision-making practice on which to build better financial behaviors over a lifetime. While quality financial learning is valuable, it is also not enough. Financial education should be complemented by five key experiences and supports including improved access to financial institutions, just-in-time information, attention to individual differences and biases, awareness of historical inequities and barriers, and policy changes.

WHAT WE'RE WATCHING
Racism and the Economy

Image of Chicago Map

To put a spotlight on how racism threatens our economy and limits the opportunities for people of color, the Federal Reserve Banks of Atlanta, Boston, and Minneapolis have launched “Racism and the Economy,” a seven-part series of virtual events aiming to examine and advance actions to dismantle structural racism.

We discuss how this conversation is connected to the work we’re doing in the field of financial literacy in our latest post.

IN REAL LIFE
Pay Attention in Class!

Charlotte Stefani shares how finEDge impacted her financial decision-making.

"What you are learning is very important, especially once you begin to make big financial decisions for your future in college or a post-high-school career. Understanding the different types of loans will be very helpful when dealing with financial aid packages." — Charlotte Stefani

CAREER CORNER
Creating Visualizations to Understand Trends

Rahat Sajwani discusses her job as VP of Relationship management at Morningstar.

"Regularly, I am using data analytics tools, including primarily Tableau, Excel, and SQL, to answer questions about what risks I am seeing at different banks, in different industries and sectors, and if there are notable market trends that our team should monitor. I work closely with preparing analysis for different presentation requests for direct bank supervisory teams, the Board of Governors, and different Reserve Bank presidents." — Rahat Sajwani

LOOKING AHEAD
finEDge Available for 2020–21 School Year

finEDge student shows excitement during class

Teach finEDge and help your students navigate financial decisions with confidence. finEDge is available to schools across the country for the 2020–21 school year through the Kendall Hunt Publishing Company.