New Infographics by ABA
America Saves Week is February 25 – March 2, and it’s the perfect time for banks to consider the advantages of providing financial education to their local communities. According to the Consumer Federation of America, the nonprofit that coordinates America Saves, consumers are “more satisfied with their financial institution when helped to save, and they use multiple products.”
But what do bankers and educators have to say about their own experience of bringing financial education to the classroom? To find out, the ABA Foundation surveyed participants in its national Teach Children to Save program. Throughout the year, the program enables banker volunteers help young people develop a savings habit early in life. Bankers registered to participate receive access to a private resource page containing promotional materials, student activities, communication tools and presentation lessons.
The ABA Foundation used participants’ survey responses to create two new infographics. Here’s what each group said.
Educators agreed that the program fills an important educational need in their classroom.
Eighty percent of participating teachers said the banker-led lesson fit into their planned curriculum—and more than half of them said it fulfilled an educational requirement at their school.
They also valued having a banker leading the lesson, as two in three teachers said they lacked the experience to teach personal finance.
Bankers saw the benefits of community outreach.
Meanwhile, bankers said that partnering with a local school helped increase name recognition for the bank while building valuable relationships in the community.
Ninety-seven percent agreed that the foundation-provided, bank-branded materials added value to their presentation, and 71 percent said that they were engaged with the school or the educator prior to the lesson.
Connecting with the right audience for financial education.
Finding a local community audience for financial education presentations has never been easier. The ABA Foundation’s FinEdLink is a free platform that matches banks with schools, agencies, faith-based ministries, community centers, and other organizations that have expressed interest in having a banker present on age-appropriate personal finance topics. The ABA Foundation markets FinEdLink to non-banker audiences around the country to help establish community relationships between bankers and those who have a vested interest in improving financial literacy.
