Lee Jimenez, a teacher at Indian Hill Elementary School in Cincinnati, Ohio, discusses credit cards and methods of payments with his 3rd grade class using online financial education curriculum SmartPath.
SMARTPATH
There’s been an extra push to get personal finance education into high schools across the country this year, following the coronavirus pandemic.
So far in 2021, 25 states in the U.S. have introduced legislation that would add personal finance education to their high school curriculum, according to Next Gen Personal Finance’s bill tracker.
Bills in Arkansas, Hawaii and Nebraska have been passed this year and signed into law. Bills in four more states — Colorado, Nevada, Rhode Island and Texas — have passed and are awaiting governors’ signatures.
“In recent years, I haven’t seen this many [bills] that have been significant and that have made it to the governor’s desk,” said Tim Ranzetta, co-founder of Next Gen Personal Finance, a personal finance education non-profit.
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Personal finance education in the U.S.
Seven states — Virginia, Alabama, Tennessee, Missouri, Utah, North Carolina and Mississippi — have what Next Gen Personal Finance refers to as the gold standard of personal finance education: a standalone half-semester course that focuses on only personal finance. Beyond that, some 21 states require some personal finance education, but say it can be incorporated into another course.
If all the bills proposed this year pass, Nebraska and Rhode Island would join the gold ranks. Texas’ bill is close — it doesn’t require that the personal finance education be in a standalone course.
The pandemic impact
The coronavirus pandemic has most certainly played a part in shining a light on the importance of personal finance education, due to the economic impact it had on the U.S.
In the last year, shutdowns to curb the spread of Covid-19 led to millions of Americans losing jobs or having hours and income cut, putting a significant strain on household finances. Even as the U.S. reopens and vaccinations tick up, it may take years for those that were hit the hardest to recover, especially if they fell behind on bills and rent during the pandemic.
“There’s a sense that some folks are being left …….
Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/03/25-states-have-introduced-personal-finance-education-bills-this-year.html
