NASHVILLE, Tenn. — As Tennessee leads many states in monetary literacy in public high faculties, Junior Achievement of Middle Tennessee goals to spice up these classes via profession, entrepreneurship and private finance packages.
Speaking to high school college students in December at Junior Achievement’s Finance Park program in Nashville, CNBC’s senior private finance correspondent Sharon Epperson shared her profession journey and supplied private finance tips.
“You’re going to be something that you want to be — whatever that is — because you will have the tools to do it,” she stated.
Here are three private finance tips Epperson shared with the high school college students.
1. Open a high-yield financial savings account
2. Invest in a Roth particular person retirement account
With a part-time job, “you’re already set up to be an investor,” Epperson advised the scholars. “Not just a saver, but an investor.”
Here’s why: With so-called earned earnings, college students can contribute to a Roth individual retirement account, which offers tax-free development on investments. You contribute after-tax money however will not owe taxes on Roth IRA withdrawals in retirement. Tax-free earnings are highly effective for youthful buyers with many years till their golden years.
3. Avoid bank card debt
Epperson additionally warned college students in regards to the “risk of plastic” and amassing credit card debt, which may be troublesome to pay again.
To keep away from issues, she instructed, use a pay as you go card for purchases and be a part of a father or mother or guardian’s bank card as a licensed person earlier than making use of for a student bank card at age 18.
Opportunity to ‘make grownup selections’
After talking, Epperson participated as a volunteer in Finance Park, Junior Achievement’s capstone monetary literacy program, which supplies college students the possibility to “make adult decisions before they’re adults,” in accordance with Trent Klingensmith, president of Junior Achievement of Middle Tennessee, which serves 22 counties.
After 13 weeks of classroom-based classes, Finance Park culminates with a real-life budgeting simulation at Junior Achievement’s facility — together with financial savings, investing and debt payoff — primarily based on the student’s profession selections.
The expertise lets them contact it, really feel it and see it earlier than they must be it.
Trent Klingensmith
President at Junior Achievement of Middle Tennessee
“The experience lets them touch it, feel it and see it before they have to be it,” stated Klingensmith.
While the group goals to have 32,000 Middle Tennessee college students take part in various programs in the course of the 2023-2024 school 12 months, the “biggest need is volunteers,” Klingensmith stated.
‘You depart somewhat seed of their mind’
Volunteers take part with college students throughout every step of Finance Park. It’s a rewarding expertise for board member Claudia Zuazua, who typically works with this system’s Latino college students.
Born and raised in Mexico City, Zuazua, who’s bilingual, stated she is aware of the cultural variations many Latino college students face when studying about private finance — particularly when English is a second language.
“They know there’s someone who understands,” stated Zuazua, who has additionally lived in Peru and Colombia. In Metro Nashville Public Schools, practically one-third of enrolled students were Hispanic in the course of the 2022-2023 tutorial 12 months, in contrast with only one.6% of lecturers.
Finance Park gives the possibility for college students to discover profession alternatives whereas training real-world money administration abilities. “You leave a little seed in their brain,” Zuazua stated. “I think that’s what matters.”