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Financial Literacy: Skills For the 21st Century

Consumer credit card debt now exceeds more than

$750 billion
(The Federal Reserve)
An estimated 28 million Americans are “unbanked”;
44.7 million more are “underbanked” (FDIC’s Alliance for
Economic Inclusion Website)
The President's Advisory Council on Financial Literacy’s
2008 Annual Report identifies financial illiteracy as among
the causes for the financial and credit crisis.
Demand for financial literacy help is on the rise; more than
a third of The New York Public Library (NYPL) patrons who
were surveyed in 2009 said they’d like to see more financial
Harold McGraw III, Chairman, President and CEO of The literacy classes and increasingly NYPL branch librarians
McGraw-Hill Companies joins winners of the Harold W. are being asked for information, advice and materials about
McGraw Jr. Prize in Education in ringing the New York Stock financial literacy fundamentals. (NYPL)
Exchange’s (NYSE) opening bell.

“
Financial Literacy Now: New York
We have learned many lessons from the current economic crisis. But • Raising awareness of the impor-
tance of financial literacy so we can ef-
none is more important than this: financial literacy is critical to our eco- fect real change in people’s knowledge
nomic well being, and, unfortunately, we are not making the grade. and behaviors.
• Providing greater access to the
Every American’s ability to provide cepts as the impact of compound interest training, services and information peo-
for our families, achieve financial secu- rates on credit card debt, diversification ple need to develop these essential skills.
rity and contribute to the growth of the in investing, and the value of saving, just • Enhancing professional develop-
broader economy is dependent on our to name a few. ment opportunities for teachers so they
ability to understand how money works. At The McGraw-Hill Companies, our are equipped to teach financial literacy
But according to the Jump$tart Coalition, mission is to provide essential informa- to students of all ages.
high school students tion and insight that help Ours is a local initiative, but clearly this
scored only 48.3% in
a recent financial lit-
eracy test. And while
college students
scored better, 62.2%,
there still is room for
significant improve-
ment. That ’s why
we need to redouble
our efforts to edu- Harold
individuals, markets and
societies perform to their
potential. That ’s why
we are excited to part-
ner with several nonprof-
it organizations on a new
campaign, Financial Lit-
eracy Now: New York,
designed to better prepare
all New Yorkers to make
“
is a national issue. That’s why we need
public and private support for regional
and national programs designed to in-
crease financial literacy for all Americans.
This includes supporting educational stan-
dards that incorporate basic economics in
curricula beginning in the earliest grades.
If we put the same emphasis on our chil-
dren’s financial literacy that we do on their
ability to read and write, we will go a long
McGraw III,
cate Americans of all Chairman, informed decisions about way toward helping them realize their
ages about mortgage President their finances. dreams, enjoy higher standards of living
and CEO, The
terms and conditions, McGraw-Hill This initiative will focus and achieve a secure financial future for
as well as such con- Companies on three priorities: generations to come.
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Bringing
Financial Literacy
to Those Who
Need It Most
At the heart of The New York Public
Library's mission to inspire lifelong The New York Public
Library’s Bronx
learning, advance knowledge and Library Center.
strengthen communities is the clear
goal of improving the lives of New
Yorkers. And, promoting the financial with you." Mr. Blech says that he tells tremely knowledgeable about resourc-
literacy of the most underserved popula- everyone about NYPL's "phenomenal" es relating to finance and investments.
tions in this City is paramount. free classes and services. Volunteer financial experts deployed
In 2009, the Library launched Job- As essential as it is to help New York- throughout the Library's 87 branches
Search@NYPL in response to the loss ers re-enter the workforce, promoting fi- will broaden the general public's access
of hundreds of thousands of jobs in nancial literacy once they're employed is to free money management resources
New York City. The impact has been a crucial next step. The Library offers a and tools.
tremendous and one that the Library wealth of financial resources, from elec- The New York Public Library is poised
hopes to replicate with this Financial tronic databases to printed materials, to expand this new Financial Literacy Now
Literacy Now campaign. For Zvi Blech and an expert staff to guide users seek- campaign in libraries across the Bronx,
who visited the Library this spring, the ing to educate themselves in financial Manhattan and Staten Island. For more
job search resources and staff are vi- matters. The Library conducts more information about The New York Public
tal: "They are very flexible. They work than 100 classes with staff who are ex- Library please visit [Link]

Empowering the Next Generation Through Economic Education

In the coming years, young people The Council for Economic Educa- teach these vital skills to young people.
will face unprecedented economic op- tion (CEE) is committed to empower- By giving teachers the tools they need to
portunities and challenges. Will they ment and opportunity through eco- teach with confidence, millions of K-12
be ready to meet them head on? The nomic and financial literacy. CEE students - nationwide and around the
answer is yes: provided they under- envisions a world in which young peo- world - will leave school with the knowl-
stand the “economic way of thinking.” ple are prepared to make informed and edge they need to make sound economic
responsible economic and financial and financial decisions later in life.
choices throughout One recent CEE teacher is Lucia,
their lives. It works who took part in a training workshop
to achieve this goal to help her teach basic financial con-
by focusing its efforts cepts to her class of at-risk high school
on teachers, the key students: “I was really impressed with
to students’ success. the quality of CEE’s program. I can
The CEE develops hardly wait to use what I have learned
and offers teaching in my own classroom. Most of my
top Photo: Denis Finnin

resources and train- students haven’t had any exposure to

i ng pr o g r a m s for good financial skills. The hands-on ac-
K-12 teachers in stan- tivities are just what they need. I want
dards-based econom- to do a good job and the CEE has made
ic and financial edu- that much easier!” Please visit www.
cation, so they can [Link]
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Financial Literacy Podcasts

Talking Financial Litera- lum, resources, and practic- gether, they present
cy Podcast, or “Talking Fin es with the show’s two pro- relevant, feasible
Lit” as its many listeners have ducers, Dr. Kathy King and approaches to f i-
come to know it, gets our na- Mark Gura. Both are affili- nancial literacy in-
tion’s educators quickly up ated with Fordham Univer- struction with the
to speed on financial litera- sity’s Graduate School of Ed- show’s first series of
cy, an essential dimension ucation and bring a special 24 episodes. These
of what kids should learn at blend of expertise to the proj- explore the current
school. The show is uniquely ect. As a former head of Math, state of financial lit-
equipped to do this through Science, and Technology pro- eracy, presenting
its appealing, entertaining fessional development for important insights, free re- The show will provide a pub-
talk show format and its free New York City public school sources, and suggestions on lic voice to important facets of
and user friendly, Internet- teachers, Gura packaged im- classroom implementation. the Financial Literacy Now
based distribution. portant new ideas for teacher The upcoming second series campaign, highlighting op-
Early in the series, teach- application. King is an inter- will explore further resources portunities for its combined
ers in a Texas focus group nationally recognized expert and practices and interview audience. The show is easily
shared their desires for new on professional development important experts in the field accessed at its website, www.
financial literacy curricu- and distance learning. To- of financial literacy education. [Link] .

Understanding Money literacy programs, previously unbanked

adults gain an understanding of money
and how it works in today’s world. Class-

and How it Works – for Adults room activities encourage students to ac-
tively think through the mathematics
and financial skills needed to accomplish
larger tasks and translate these skills to
Literacy Partners, Inc., a not-for- New York City, Literacy Partners has daily financial decision making. Finan-
profit organization, provides free taught more than 25,000 adults the ba- cial literacy classes empower students
community-based adult and family sics of reading, writing, mathematics, fi- with the necessary information and ed-
literacy programs that help adults ful- nancial and health literacy through high- ucation to effectively manage their fi-
ly realize their potential as individuals, quality classes and programs offered nances and secure fair banking services
parents and citizens. As the only nation- at no cost to them or their family mem- so that students do not fall prey to risky,
ally accredited adult literacy program in bers. Through participation in financial deceptive and often fraudulent financial
services. Mary S., a Literacy Partners
student notes that, “before I started tak-
ing classes at Literacy Partners, I cashed
my paycheck at a check cashing place.
My teacher taught me how to open an ac-
count. Now my check is deposited into
my own bank account. I also have a sav-
ings account and learned how to use the
computer to pay my bills.”
Effective management of financial
resources is crucial to increasing family
stability and developing good consumer
habits. For more than 35 years Literacy
Partners has delivered quality programs
throughout New York City. Please visit
us at [Link]
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Financial Literacy Now: New York

Campaign for Financial Literacy
Financial Literacy Now: New York is a project of The Campaign Lead Partners:
McGraw-Hill Companies in partnership with The New
York Public Library (NYPL) and several other nonprof-
it organizations, to raise awareness about the critical im-
portance of financial literacy and provide greater access to
training, services and information.

Campaign Highlights:

Financial and economic literacy educational materials accessible online

and through workshops and seminars
Easy-access financial literacy resources at select library branch locations
 inancial and economic literacy training for teachers through workshops,
F
podcasts and other online resources
Financial literacy instruction through adult basic reading classes
 eacher and student access to business and economic experts bringing
T
real-world economic and personal finance issues to the classroom

•Council for Economic Education

[Link]
•Literacy Partners, Inc.
[Link]
•The McGraw-Hill Companies
[Link]
•The New York Public Library
[Link]
•Talking Fin Lit
[Link]
•Working in Support of Educa-
[Link]/financialliteracynow tion W!SE [Link]