Welcome, Educators!
This area of the JA of WNY website is just for teachers! Here you'll find resources, links, and news you can use about Junior Achievement of WNY!
Did you know....
Junior Achievement in-class programs correlate with the New York State Standards for Learning.
FREE Resource for you and your students!
Have you checked out the JA Student Center yet? Students can search for colleges based on wants and needs, seek out financial aid to help pay for that higher education, gain knowledge on how to handle money, explore careers, get tips on how to start a business, and much more! Check it out today!
Get Junior Achievement in your classroom!
If you are interested in having a Junior Achievement volunteer visit your classroom, you're in the right place! Just click here to view a listing of all of our programs by grade level. Then use our Online Program Request Form to let us know that you're ready for your students to learn about entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and how to succeed in the workplace! Can't find the one you want? Contact us at 716-853-1381 x16 or sbloomquist@jawny.org.
In the news....
Buffalo News 4/10/2008:
Teenagers’ financial know-how is low
Fed chairman urges high school students to raise knowledge
By Jeannine Aversa - ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON — Young people’s financial know-how has gone from bad to worse.
High school seniors, on average, answered correctly only 48.3 percent of questions about personal finance and economics, according to a nationwide survey released Wednesday by the Federal Reserve. That was even lower than the 52.4 percent in the previous survey in 2006 and marked the worst score out of the six surveys conducted so far.
With home foreclosures at record highs, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke stressed in a speech that young people must sharpen their financial knowledge so they are in a better position to make sound investment decisions throughout their lives.
“The financial preparedness of our nation’s youth is essential to their well-being and of vital importance to our economic future,” Bernanke said at the Fed event on financial literacy.
“In light of the problems that have arisen in the subprime mortgage market, we are reminded of how critically important it is for individuals to become financially literate at an early age so that they are better prepared to make decisions and navigate an increasingly complex financial marketplace,” the Fed chairman added.
In this year’s survey, only 16.8 percent correctly answered that stocks likely would offer the higher growth over 18 years of saving for a child’s education, while 37.3 percent thought a U.S. savings bond — one of the most conservative investments — would offer the highest growth.
Nearly 53 percent said they would have no liability if their credit card was stolen and a thief ran up $1,000 worth of debt. (Liability is limited to $50 after the credit-card issuer is notified.) Only 13 percent knew they might have to be responsible for $50.
“The survey demonstrated that graduating high school seniors continue to struggle with financial literacy basics,” said Lewis Mandell, professor of finance and managerial economics at the University at Buffalo’s School of Management.
The latest survey — the sixth — was released by the Federal Reserve. The surveys, done every two years, were sponsored by the Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy, which wants students to have the skills to be financially competent.
College students’ financial literacy also was tested this year. They answered 62 percent of the questions correctly.
The surveys were paid for by the Merrill Lynch Foundation.