Newsletter: Improving Your Money Sense

Statement

Dear Friend,

This week Indiana is joining the rest of the country in celebrating Money Smart Week, a special week designed to aid consumers in learning how to better manage their personal finances.

To improve education for young adults on how to be fiscally responsible, I recently introduced the Young Americans Financial Literacy Act, a bill that promotes the most effective financial literacy educational models for students ages 8-24. Only seventeen states require some form of high school financial education, even though studies show students who receive financial literacy are considerably more financially responsible.

According to the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, more than half of American adults rate themselves as either "fair" or "poor" in terms of financial literacy. Consequently, problems with personal finance and money management are passed on to children by parents who believe students are learning financial literacy in schools. In reality, only 30% of teachers are incorporating these lifelong skills into their curriculum.
America should be leading the world with the best-educated students who will drive our economic innovation and success.

If we can strengthen financial literacy education, and instill these important skills in our kids, we have an opportunity to spur our economic growth and ensure that more Americans have a shot at achieving their financial goals.

I am proud to introduce this bill, and am honored to serve in Congress on behalf of Hoosier families like yours. I value your ideas and look forward to hearing from you.

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