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For Immediate Release Contact: Patrick Harris Director of Media Relations Ohio Credit Union League pharris@ohiocul.org 800-486-2917

Parents, Educators Should Spotlight Financial Literacy in April

MoneyAndStuff.info has free financial education curricula, games, and tips

Dublin, Ohio (April 1, 2008) – Ohio credit unions are recognizing April as Financial Literacy Month and reminding parents and educators about the importance of teaching financial education at home and in the classroom.  In 2006, the Ohio General Assembly created a mandate requiring financial education in all Ohio high schools by 2010.  However, the need for financial education is immediate, and the Ohio Credit Union League is arming parents and teachers with educational tools through their MoneyAndStuff initiative.

According to a survey of Ohio adults, commissioned by the League, less than one quarter (23 percent) of Ohioans make any effort to encourage financial literacy in their families and only five percent were taught about personal finance when they were young.  The Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Education reported that the national average financial literacy skills sore for 12^th graders was 52.4%, with only 6.9% of students receiving a “C” grade or better. Credit unions are stepping up their efforts to make young Ohioans more financially savvy by providing free resources to their local schools and residents.

Hundreds of bright orange toolkits containing financial education curricula and marketing materials were recently shipped by the League to Ohio credit unions as part of the MoneyAndStuff initiative.  The MoneyAndStuff toolkit provides 385 credit unions in Ohio with instructions and resources for implementing financial education in their local schools, and contains detailed information about how to promote the free financial education materials created on the www.MoneyAndStuff.info Web site to educators and parents. 

“As financial experts in the community, credit unions have always believed that teaching financial education is part of their responsibility,” said Paul Mercer, League president.  “These kits arm Ohio credit unions with the necessary tools to reach out to the future generation of consumers and ensure they understand their personal finances.”

MoneyAndStuff has been introduced at press conferences in seven Ohio cities: Cleveland, Kent, Youngstown, Lima, Toledo, Hamilton, and Cincinnati.  Additional media events are being planned for Dayton and Columbus.

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Credit unions are member-owned financial cooperatives which are democratically controlled by the members. As not-for-profit financial institutions, credit unions return earning to their members in the form of dividends, lower loan rates, higher savings rates, and improved service. Credit unions consistently rank the highest in customer satisfaction of any financial institutions, and have been Number 1 in every American Banker/Gallup poll conducted since 1989.