Fun and Finances

The Center for Economic Education and Entrepreneurship (CEEE) at the University of Delaware's Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics stays busy all year, but April also marks part of a particularly packed spring and summer calendar. Fittingly for a month with the tax deadline in it, April is Financial Literacy Month.

CEEE staff say many young people don't get basic personal finance education in their daily lives for various reasons, leaving them underprepared in ways that ripple through their adult lives. The Center aims to change that, hosting special events and working with Delaware schools to provide teacher training and resources for students at different grade levels.

"We simply want to see Delaware's students become financially literate and productive citizens, and we're willing to do everything in our power to help make that happen," said Scott Bacon, assistant director of CEEE.

Fairy tale rewrite teaches students the importance of saving

A retelling of the "Jack and the Beanstalk" folk tale engaged elementary students around Delaware from April 15-19 with lessons about the importance of saving and not being controlled by debt.

Each year, volunteers from banks and financial institutions in the region visit Delaware third- and fourth-grade classrooms as part of the nationally observed Teach Children to Save Day.

This year's event, the 26th, was sponsored in Delaware by CEEE in partnership with the Delaware Bankers Association. According to CEEE, more than 200 classrooms from 68 elementary schools signed up. Volunteers from 23 banks brought literacy education to around 5,400 students.

At Newark Charter Primary School, students got a visit from Kyra Giakas, an analyst for JP Morgan Chase. Giakas, who graduated with a degree in finance and economics in 2022 from UD Lerner, read "The Amazing Money Stalk" to the children.

The comic book is part of a series by Greg Koseluk of the Delaware Bankers' Association. It features the magician The Great Investo, a hapless money manager who gets sound advice from his assistant Penny but doesn't always heed it.

In this story, students followed along as the Great Investo learned a lesson about the perils of fast cash and debt after he planted a magic bean and it sprouted into a plant with money for leaves.

It was Giakas' first time participating in Teach Children to Save Day, and she said afterward that she thought every school should get involved. In her job, she's seen the real-world consequences of people lacking these financial skills.

"I am passionate about personal finance, and I love working with kids, so this was the perfect opportunity to make a difference by helping to instill healthy financial habits at a young age," she said.

Funding the Future: Music Meets Money

It's tempting to use the word "unusual" to describe a combination rock concert and a financial literacy crash course. But that term just doesn't seem quite right, given that the band Gooding has now reached nearly 300,000 high school students in 35 states with both its music and its money management message.

The show came to Howard High School of Technology on April 17, led by founding member Steven Gooding, who does the tours through his nonprofit Funding the Future.