Goal Card Program

The month of June was pretty fantastic for twenty rising sophomores at Melrose High this summer.  They were chosen to participante in a financial savings pilot through the RISE Foundation Goal Card Program.  This is the first ever Children's Savings Account (CSA) program that RISE has put together, with the hopes that each participant will have a significant amount of money saved by the time of their graduation. Parents also completed a mandatory orientation process to get their sons and daughters prepared for the summer workshops and training materials.  RISE coordinators were thrilled with the dedication that students demonstrated in class and are looking forward to assisting them with resources and motivators to help them complete their three year journey to sucess.  This initial effort was very successful because of the various collaborations formed with community partners, volunteers and parental support.  

The “Live.Life.Prepared.” Goal Card CSA (Children’s Savings Account) Initiative is an extension of RISE’s traditional Goal Card program and is a special saving plan program to help students accumulate funds for post-secondary related expenses (college application fees, entrance exams, tuition, books, laptop computer, etc.). It is intended to serve as a model that will help high school students to:

* Become more familiar with traditional banking institutions & asset building concepts

* Learn the importance of education, good decision-making & community service

* Increase their perspective on how money can be used and managed

* Earn funds through achieving designated benchmarks so he/she will be better able to cover their initial post-secondary-related expenses.

The program will run for 36 months; beginning with their sophomore year and ending at graduation when they reach senior status. Throughout the 36 months, participants will be responsible for depositing up to $50 a month, with the opportunity to have it matched at 100% by the RISE Foundation. 

The summer institute was held Monday – Thursday, from June 4 through June 28 from 9 am to 1 pm. The institute was held in the heart of the Orange Mound community at Red Zone Ministries. Of the 20 program participants, six individuals have successfully obtained summer employment through the City of Memphis MPLOY program, as well as other outlets. One of the primary goals of the summer institute is to change the way that participants think about banking. RISE wanted to offer financial literacy with hands-on experience to take away the anxiety, overlapping fear, and lack of trust that students and parents may have had in banks and saving money.  The students followed a rigorous curriculum, that assisted them in putting a plan together to help them make better financial decisions as they journey into their adulthood. They even participated in weekly challenges where they were able to compete against one another to create business plans, budgets, and even pick live stocks to invest in!

The 4-week summer institute consisted of a four-part weekly module that provided extensive financial education in the following areas: (1) budgeting, (2) saving and investing, (3) spending, and (4) earning/entrepreneurship. The program selected a dual curriculum to include information from the Virginia Learning Resource Center Money Talks financial literacy plan in addition to Practical Money Skills Financial Literacy for Grades 9 -12.  Program participants were evaluated weekly to ensure that they had attained the knowledge necessary to move forward with the next module. In addition to financial literacy training, the CSA Summer Institute incorporated a leadership focus to include personal, professional, academic development, and soft skills building. The purpose for the incorporation of the leadership focus is to:

-          Know where the students are developmentally.

-          Help build self esteem

-          Help participants build social skills through program activities

-          Provide opportunities for young people to emerge as future leaders through exposure to key speakers and professionals

The summer institute ended with a week of encouragement and team building with visits to the Federal Reseve Bank and Memphis Rox.  At the Federal Reserve, banking professionals were able to share their journey of how they unlocked their passions in their perspective fields.  Students were amazed by the variety of positions within a bank and remarked that being able to speak with bank personnel helped guide them into thinking about possible future careers in banking.  Students were also  able to partake in team building exercises at Memphis Rox where they explored an obstacle climbing wall with their classmates.  The exercises re-emphazied that any hurdle can be overcome with a roadmap and a guide.  Thier financial plans and their RISE coaches will serve as their roadmap and guide. 

On the last day of camp, a Financial Center Manager with First Tennessee Bank was able to open savings accounts for each of the participants signaling the beginning of their commitment to the 36-month savings program. In addition to attending monthly workshops throughout the school year, CSA students and parents will also be responsible for making a monthly deposit into the savings account.

Overall the students were very appreciative for the opportunity to engage with their summer camp classmates and form this bonding goal together.  They are ready for the challenge and are committed to saving on a monthly basis and sticking with their goals until they meet again next summer to access their progress as juniors.  

Links:

• RISE Foundation Inc