What Does Financial Literacy Month represent?
Since 2003, April has been designated by US legislators as National Financial Literacy Month.
Financial Literacy Month: April 2023
In 2023, April will be recognized as National Financial Literacy Month for its 20th year, highlighting the enduring importance of financial education in today’s ever-changing world.
We are navigating through a global landscape filled with various financial challenges. In the United States, inflation has reached levels not seen in the past 40 years, with recent geopolitical events further exacerbating the situation in various financial sectors. Rising fuel and energy prices have caused concern for households, making it crucial for individuals to learn how to combat inflation and offset some of the adverse impacts of escalating costs.
Despite these challenges, there is a silver lining: the opportunity to improve our personal knowledge about our finances and learn how to make our money work harder and smarter. It’s never too late to start taking control of your financial future.
During Financial Literacy Month, financial institutions, nonprofits, and human service agencies amplify their focus on the importance of financial literacy through events, programs, and counseling. The goal goes beyond helping consumers learn more about finances; it aims to empower them to improve their personal and household financial stability and success.
Financial literacy involves both having the knowledge and the competence to manage your personal and household finances effectively, enabling you to set and reach meaningful financial goals. Embrace this Financial Literacy Month as an opportunity to take charge of your financial journey and secure a better future for you and your loved ones.
Who Gets Involved in Financial Literacy Month
Financial Literacy Month involvement and activities can vary widely not only by state but also by region and community. Some communities adopt extensive activities to reach citizens from elementary school all the way through senior centers. Others post on social media, while still others may not even be aware of National Financial Literacy Month.
Your state’s affiliate of the national Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy is most likely to be involved in Financial Literacy Month planning and implementation. Find your local Jump$tart affiliate by clicking here.
Additionally, you should reach out to your state’s department of finance, banking, or consumer affairs. Usually, this is the government entity responsible for regulating banking institutions in your state. You can find a list of these state departments by clicking here. Many of these government entities list related activities on their websites while others get directly involved in events and workshops.
Ask the manager at your bank or credit union how they are involved in financial literacy month events. If they indicate they are not involved, encourage them to become so. In fact, banks have a regulatory and financial incentive to participate in such community events and activities as part of the responsibilities outlined in the Community Reinvestment Act passed back in 1977.
Nonprofit credit counseling agencies are often the most active organizations during financial literacy month. With education charters, their responsibilities involve educating their clients and communities on topics such as budgeting, credit building, eliminating debt, and saving for emergencies, all of which fit perfectly into the month’s events. Find a nonprofit credit counseling agency near you through an industry trade group such as fcaa.org.
Many schools and colleges have teachers, instructors, and professors who take up the cause of financial literacy month each year. In high schools and colleges, these are often the economics, business, and family & consumer science teachers. Ask your child’s teacher about any plans they have for including financial literacy in their curriculum this month.
Libraries have taken on the task over the past few years of promoting healthy personal finances. Check with your local library to see what activities they have planned for the month. Often, there will be workshops scheduled by nonprofits and professionals promoting the effective use of budgets, credit, and debt elimination methods.
If you are currently in the military or are a veteran, in the guard, or in the reserve, you likely know that we just finished Military Saves week at the end of February. So close on its heels, Financial Literacy Month can seem overwhelming to many on-base family services coordinators, so you will have to ask whether there are any personal finance activities planned for April.
How Money Fit Is Supporting Financial Literacy Month
Money Fit has supported Financial Literacy Month since we hired our first financial education director back in 2004. Activities we have spearheaded or helped implement have included a Piggy Bank Beauty Contest in Idaho, classroom presentations from elementary and middle school through high school and colleges, and live early morning broadcasts with loan news reporters kicking off Financial Literacy Month from our conference rooms, just to name a few.
This year, we continue our growth in online financial education opportunities, having added our awarded-winning My Life My Choices online budgeting activity to our Academy. This 30- to 45-minute scenario-based challenge is ideal for middle and high school students. Plus, they each receive a free certificate of completion in PDF format sent directly and immediately to their inbox.
Additionally, Money Fit is committed to offering weekly Money Fit LIVE webinars, both addressing practical money topics and providing live chatting options to have related questions answered and concerns resolved.
How You Can Get Involved
If you think like we do that National Financial Literacy Month is a fantastic idea, contact your state’s Jump$tart Coalition to volunteer to help or ask about how to get involved. They might invite you to attend their meetings or volunteer at an event.
Additionally, we strongly encourage you to promote financial literacy month on your social media pages.
On a personal level, we hope you will commit to increasing your own personal financial literacy. Here are a few ideas to consider:
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Check out and read a personal finance book from the library
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Take one webinar a week and share what you learned on your social media pages
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Read a children’s personal finance book to your kids, grandkids, nieces, or nephews. We love The Berenstain Bears’ Trouble with Money so much that we’ve created a free program to get kids around the country their very own copy.
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Subscribe to a new blog or podcast about a personal finance topic you either love or could use help with.
Here’s How to Get The Most From Financial Literacy Month
Depending on where you live, April might bring showers to grow May flowers.
While April may not be the rainy season in all states and territories, April is perennially Financial Literacy Month in the US. With the support of the National Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy and its state affiliates around the country, Financial Literacy Month has grown to involve financial institutions, government agencies, nonprofit organizations, schools, and interested individuals.
Money Fit by DRS whole-heartedly supports financial literacy month while also encouraging our partners, citizens, and clients to promote financial wellness year-round.
3 Steps to Take Full Advantage of Financial Literacy Month
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Connect financial education to the discipline and teaching of your child
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Make financial literacy the topic of your book club
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Ask and research one financial question a day
If you have a teen or tween-aged child at home who requires a bit of extra discipline for whatever reason, turn their grounding into an opportunity to expand their financial literacy. Require him or her to show you a certificate of completion from a free, online financial education program such as those available at www.MoneyFit.org/academy or before lifting the grounding. It just might be the most beneficial 30 minutes of their disciplined life. Of course, using the numerous resources available through financial literacy providers that are supportive of the financial literacy month, as teaching materials for your child or even students is a great start.
If you participate in a book club, consider adding a personal finance book to the reading list. Of course, we like our own Everyday Money for Everyday People book (Christensen, 2014), but other good reads include The Next Millionaire Next Door (Stanley & Fallow, 2018), The Difference (Chatzky, 2009) and, if you are feeling particularly ambitious, A Framework for Understanding Poverty (2018, Payne).
Finally, ask and research a personal finance question each day. A simple browser search of “Personal Finance Question of the Day” will yield many options from which to choose, many with corresponding answers or research opportunities. Here’s one to start you off:
Which is the best way to accelerate your debt repayment, the snowball, avalanche, or landslide method?
State Financial Literacy Events
Financial literacy month events vary dramatically at the state level. Many states launch the month with a proclamation signing by the governor or his or her representative. These are typically free events at the state capitol and would be a wonderful part of any civics lesson for young people. Some states hold special conferences while participating organizations in other states host educational events and programs.
For example, in Idaho, the Idaho Financial Literacy Coalition (Jump$tart’s state chapter) promotes a piggy bank beauty contest for elementary school students between third and sixth grade.
Organization Participating in Financial Literacy Month
Banks, credit unions, Jump$tart Coalition members, nonprofit credit counseling agencies, colleges, county extension offices, and many other organizations offer free personal finance courses throughout the month of April. Many of these programs are facilitated in the community while others are provided at the organization’s home office. Still others, like those available through Money Fit by DRS, are available 24/7 online at no cost.
Why Financial Literacy Matters
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Personal finance remains the number one topic of argument within a marriage.
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Parents rank teaching financial responsibility to their children near the top of their wish list.
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Only a handful of states require high school students to take a personal finance course before graduation.
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Poor financial literacy leads to poor decision-making which leads to poor behavior which limits the household’s ability to reach its financial goals.
Whatever the reason you choose, take advantage of the opportunities this year to get involved in the financial literacy and capability movement. Check with your state’s Jump$tart coalition for activities available in your area. You can also contact your state’s department of finance, banking, or financial institutions since many keep a list of financial education activities and events happening in April.
How to Get Involved With the Financial Literacy Month
Finally, if you would like to get involved with Financial Literacy Month as a volunteer, contact your state Jump$tart Coalition or give us a call at Money Fit by DRS. We would be happy to connect you with like-minded individuals and organizations promoting personal financial responsibility across the country.
Questions Related to the National Financial Literacy Month
Who started National Financial Literacy Month? Back in 2000, the National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE), headquartered in Denver, Colorado, organized a Youth Financial Literacy Day. However, to avoid the appearance of favoring any one organization as an educational provider, NEFE requested that the National Jump$tart take over the role of organizing and promoting the day, after which Jump$tart expanded it to the entire month of April.
At the urging of Jump$tart’s state affiliates and other organizations and individuals concerned with Americans’ low levels of financial literacy, several state governors designated April as financial literacy month. Eventually, in 2003, federal lawmakers began passing annual resolutions to make April financial literacy month.
Who decides that April is Financial Literacy Month? April is declared financial literacy month on many levels. US lawmakers pass a resolution each year designating April as Financial Literacy Month. Many state senates and houses of representatives do the same. Not to be outdone or forgotten, mayors from quite a few cities and towns around the country choose to issue their own proclamation designating April as financial literacy month in their local communities.