Pub. 1 2010 Issue 3

www.wvbankers.org 18 W e all know the importance of education. I tell school kids that it opens the doors of opportunity. I mention the oft-cited statistic that those who go to college make on aver- age a million more dollars than those who don’t. And that’s all true. But there is another type of education lacking in this country. Some may argue this shortcoming is just as damaging as academic test scores which show our performance wanting. It’s financial education, or a lack thereof. Folks in the banking industry are better able to work with customers who pos- sess at least a basic knowledge of money and finance. I mention banking here for obvious reasons. No matter what sector of the economy we’re talking about we must not give financial education short shrift. It enables us to make intelligent decisions when seeking a loan; when applying for a credit card; when planning retire- ment; the list goes on and on. Here in our office we give students real life lessons that do not carry cata- strophic circumstances. We tell them to “Get a Life.” That’s the name of a game we play in middle and high schools, with the help of community leaders, to illustrate the real-life realities of han- dling money. For instance, as soon as a student en- ters the door he or she is assigned a job and salary. Some may eke out a living; others are blessed to be imaginary doc- tors and lawyers. Often, by bad luck of the draw, a student finds he simply can’t live on the wage he is given. About halfway through the game the student is able to imagine he has gone back to school and emerged with a new degree and more lucrative job. It’s not quite so simple to change course in real life, but millions do it every day. It at least shows kids that educa- tion does indeed make a difference in income and standard of living and illustrates the possibilities of charting a new course. “Get a Life” falls under our NetWorth umbrella. NetWorth is a comprehen- sive, kindergarten-to-twelfth-grade program which folds financial concepts into already existing subjects. A math class learning a lesson on slope might also be exposed to rises and falls in the stock market, or asked to calculate the percentage loss or gain in a stock. Our office understands instructors are already plenty busy with all the objec- tives they are required to teach. That’s why we fold the finance into subjects already being taught. Teacher morale has to be healthy for this to work. NetWorth is produced in partnership with the State Department of Educa- tion. If things fall into place, we should see full saturation in all schools by the end of the next school year. All the while, students will see they indeed need two types of education – the conventional and the financial. The need for conventional education isn’t going anywhere. Jobs will be harder to come by. It’s hard to tell just how many companies will return to pre-recession staffing levels. Many have simply tightened their belts and kept on trucking. One fact is indisputable – the more educated will claim the jobs that are left. Presently, the unemployment rate for college degrees is only 5 percent. It is 10.5 percent for those with only a high school degree and 15.6 percent for Americans with less than a high school diploma. Once that education is secure another course of study begins to take shape – learning to manage one’s money. I and my staff hope our young don’t waste their wages and fall into a sinkhole of debt. We can teach them better. Q Two Educations Not a Luxury Anymore By John D. Perdue, State Treasurer