(Albany, NY) – The New York Credit Union Foundation recently held a one-day financial education training program utilizing interactive distance learning. The morning provided train-the-trainer sessions for the National Endowment for Financial Education® (NEFE®) High School Financial Training Program® (HSFPP). The afternoon featured presentations on four “hot financial topics,” including: investing in today’s economy, new credit card regulations, lessons on avoiding debt and an online IRS program, Understanding Taxes.
Hosted by local credit unions, the free sessions provided credit union staff/volunteers, educators and representatives from community-based organizations with the necessary skills and noncommercial resources to motivate today’s youth into taking control of their spending and savings habits.
More than 210 individuals participated in the teleconference, which was broadcast via Polycom from Cornell University to 19 satellite locations in the following New York counties: Albany, Broome, Cayuga, Chautauqua, Clinton, Erie, Essex, Jefferson, Monroe, Nassau, New York, Niagara, Oneida, Rensselaer, Rockland, Steuben, Suffolk, and Tompkins. The majority of sessions were held at Cornell Cooperative Extension offices.
Maryann Cooke, a representative from Sacred Heart School and a participant at the Nassau County site, commented, “The amount of information presented was overwhelming! The afternoon sessions were terrific! I can not wait to put into practice what I learned today.”
“A number of studies indicate that our youth have very little understanding of how to manage their personal finances,” said Diane LaVigna-Wixted, executive director of the Foundation. “The Foundation, in keeping with its mission to help improve the financial literacy and independence of New Yorkers, believes that use of the NEFE HSFPP curriculum in or out of the classroom can help enhance the financial savvy of today’s youth.”
NEFE New York sponsors include: Liverpool Central Schools FCU, Mid-Hudson Valley FCU, MONEY FCU and Municipal CU.
The New York Credit Union Foundation serves credit unions, schools and community organizations that help improve the financial literacy and independence of New Yorkers and promote the credit union difference. For more information about the Foundation, visit www.nycuf.org.
Participants gather at Cornell Cooperative Extension iin Voorheesville, NY, one of 19 locations throughout the state, to participate in interactive train-the-trainersessions offered by the New York Credit Union Foundation.
