NE Franklin News

WASHINGTON, D.C. — To conclude Financial Literacy Month, Congresswoman Joyce Beatty (OH-03) and Congressman Mike Gallagher (WI-08) last week introduced the Student Empowerment and Financial Literacy Act, a bill that would create a grant program within the Department of Education to promote financial literacy programs in K-12 schools. The grants would be awarded for three years on a competitive basis and would prioritize schools that serve underbanked populations.

“Financial education and the development of economic skills to build wealth is a lifelong journey that begins in the classroom,” said Congresswoman Beatty. “It is critical for young schoolchildren to learn the building blocks of how to budget, save, borrow, and invest at an early age. I spent many years championing this initiative in secondary schools in Ohio, and I am proud to join Congressman Gallagher’s effort to support the advancement of financial literacy programs in classrooms across the country, particularly in the underbanked communities that need it most.”

“Financial literacy is an important life skill that lays the foundation for long-term financial success,” said Congressman Gallagher. “While a number of states, including Wisconsin, require schools to incorporate financial literacy programs into their curriculum, many lack the resources to fully implement them. This bill ensures schools from Milwaukee to Manawa have an opportunity to develop and enact innovative courses that get students the personal finance knowledge they need to thrive.”

Beatty is co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional Financial Literacy and Wealth Creation Caucus, which seeks to promote financial education as a tool for economic prosperity and wealth-building in America.

According to the Council for Economic Education’s 2022 biennial report, 47 states, including Ohio, currently include personal finance education in their K-12 standards. The Student Empowerment and Financial Literacy Act will provide schools with an opportunity to design a program that best fits their needs, be it through training or partnering with another institution such as a local bank or credit union.

For the full text of the bill, click here.

Original source can be found here.