by Brenda Campbell, President and CEO, Make A Difference – Wisconsin
March is the time of the year when our financial education programs pick up the pace – and when I feel a deep sense of gratitude.
Looking over our program schedule for the month, I see fantastic schools, dedicated volunteers, passionate supporters – and more than 1,250 students who will gain critical financial know-how. We could end up with more students served in a single month than during any other month over our 10-plus years in financial literacy.
To me, it’s also a reminder to be grateful for all the people involved who share our belief and dedication in teen financial empowerment.
I’m grateful for the school partners, who open their classrooms and community sites, and share the precious class time because they know their students need these lessons. In March alone, that includes hundreds of seniors at a great new partner high school, La Follette in Madison, and more classes of students in Chicago, this time at Golder College Prep. We have specialty programs for students at Shared Journeys, Rufus King and Whitnall. Longtime Money Sense partner schools and educators like Pius XI, Ronald Reagan, JMAC and Kettle Moraine are returning for lessons. Of course, Money Coach groups meet once again, as they round the corner on another impactful year of mentoring and life skills at select sites in and around Milwaukee.
For all of those sessions across Wisconsin and into Chicago, there are dozens of volunteers from the business community who share their time, talent and experiences with students. (Like Eric Arvold, pictured above, a long-time volunteer from Cedarburg who works in Chicago and has been fantastic in new lessons there at Noble Street College Prep.) I hope these and all of our volunteers understand that we could not empower teens without you. I hope volunteers can take a moment to consider all of the students and lessons going on outside of the ones you lead. It really is a movement!
And I’m grateful for our supporters. What an incredible group who put their generosity behind our mission, from that growing group of monthly givers, to those long-time supporters who find unique ways to contribute, and even that mounting list of people registering for and sponsoring this year’s Investment Conference on April 27th. By the way, there are a few seats left and active volunteers get in half price!
Whether it’s for your time, energy, openness or generosity, I offer my heartfelt thank you, both personally and on behalf of these 1,250 teens. Your compassion and dedication will pay dividends for our community long after this month.
(A reminder: if you are an educator, administrator or community site leader in Wisconsin or the Chicago area, let us know if your students could benefit from personal finance courses and mentors. Let’s supplement your curriculum with financial literacy skills and resources that your teenagers can take with them for the rest of their lives!)