Accredited Program Teaches Money Skills to Local High School Students
SANTA ROSA, CA –Redwood Credit Union (RCU), in partnership with the Sonoma County Office of Education and Santa Rosa City Schools, will offer their 8th free 16-hour Financial Academy for local high school students. Using the High School Financial Planning Program (HSFPP) created by the National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE), the program includes helpful topics such as budgeting, financial planning, saving and investing, credit and debt management, and other life skills related to managing money.
Redwood Credit Union’s Free Spring Financial Academy will be held at Redwood Credit Union’s Administrative Offices at 3033 Cleveland Avenue in Santa Rosa, March 19-20, from 9:00 am until 4:00 pm each day, and March 21 from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. Students currently enrolled in 11th or 12th grade at any Sonoma County high school are eligible to attend. To register, visit www.redwoodcu.org/academy or call RCU at (707) 576-5259 to reserve your seat. Space is limited, so students are encouraged to register early.
“Redwood Credit Union is committed to financial education for our Members and communities, and we strongly believe that money management skills learned at a young age are beneficial for a lifetime,” said Brett Martinez, President & CEO of RCU. Martinez is a strong supporter of financial literacy, and maintains that money management is an essential life skill that should be required in public school coursework. “Ultimately, we hope to see financial management skills made a mandatory part of the state’s high school economics curriculum, and we are pleased to see that some schools are already looking at ways to incorporate financial literacy as a graduation requirement,” Martinez added.
So far, nearly 300 students have graduated from RCU’s Financial Academies since they were introduced in 2009, and the program has received positive response from students, parents, educators and legislators. RCU also offers adult financial literacy and outreach programs, and hosts a variety of free educational seminars and events for Members and the community throughout the year.
Founded in 1950, RCU is a not-for-profit cooperative, serving the financial needs of local people and small businesses. RCU's products and services include checking and savings accounts, youth accounts, auto and home loans, credit cards, commercial and SBA loans, investments and more. The Credit Union also offers insurance through RCU Insurance Services and auto buying through RCU Auto Services. Anyone living or working in the North Bay can benefit from becoming a Member of Redwood Credit Union, which currently serves 225,000 Members and has over $2.1 billion in assets. RCU has 18 full-service branch locations from San Francisco to Ukiah. For more information, please call (707) 545-4000, toll-free 1 (800) 479-7928, or visit www.redwoodcu.org.