Most High Schoolers Are Asking for Financial Literacy Classes

Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!

Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.

Visit Suniway.ph to learn

Learn4Life's financial skills classes teach teens how to avoid money pitfalls

Los Angeles, April 08, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Students are asking for personal finance instruction - more than 85 percent - but only 10 states currently require the course. Another 15 states have mandated it for cohorts graduating in 2030-31. [1]

That's being applauded by schools like Learn4Life, a network of 80+ public high schools operating in four states, which has been offering financial literacy as an elective for a decade and will soon be making it part of the core curriculum.

In a national poll commissioned by Learn4Life, more than 85 percent of recent high school grads wished their high schools had spent more time focusing on financial literacy and real-world skills like saving, investing, how to buy a car and closing on a home. [2]

April is Financial Literacy Month, a reminder that financial education improves credit scores, lowers loan delinquency rates and reduces the likelihood of falling behind on credit card payments. And graduates of high schools with financial education are less likely to fall prey to high-cost predatory loans (such as payday loans) than those without financial education. [3]

"Our curriculum helps students learn to prioritize spending based on needs vs. wants, how to read a paystub's withholdings and deductions, and the ins and outs of compound interest,” said Shellie Hanes, superintendent at Learn4Life. "We infuse the classes will real-life situations and try to make it engaging with mock budgeting events where they have to decide how to carve up a given income.”

Hanes points out that financial education is essential for students of all socioeconomic levels. Of the six million adults who don't have a bank account, 23 percent are from low-income households, are less educated or are in a minority. These "unbanked” individuals pay fees to cash their paychecks, purchase money orders or use a prepaid credit card. [4]

Learn4Life student Roxeanna is on a path to financial literacy by building credit and getting a good job. She has learned how to budget, create a financial plan and save money.

"I now realize why it's important to know about finances for your adult life,” she said. "I learned that budgeting needs to become a habit now so when I'm older I'll be in a great financial state.”

For more information, visit www.Learn4Life.org.

About Learn4Life

Learn4Life is a network of nonprofit public high schools that provide students personalized learning, career training and life skills. Each school is locally controlled, tuition free and gives students the flexibility and one-on-one attention they need to succeed. Serving more than 64,000 students through a year-round program, we help them prepare for a future beyond high school. For more information, please visit www.learn4life.org.

[1] https://www.cbsnews.com/news/high-school-financial-literacy-classes/

[2] Data from a survey conducted by Talker Research on behalf of Learn4Life from June 17-27, 2024, with a panel of 2,000 Americans - 1,000 parents of public high school students and 1,000 recent public high school graduates (ages 18 and 19).

[3] Next Gen Personal Finance: Financial Education for ALL

[4] Federal Reserve: Report on the Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2018 - May 2019

Attachment

• Financial Literacy for teens

CONTACT: Ann Abajian

Learn4Life

559-903-7893

[email protected]