How The Program Works

Recruiting

College student volunteers enroll local high school students.

We select high school students from underserved areas based on a combination of need and demonstrated interest in economics and investing

Students commit to complete an 8-week course and to graduate high school

Teaching

Volunteers deliver interactive lessons about investing.

Topics include

What is a stock?
Compounding interest
Volatility and diversification
Mutual funds and ETFs
Dollar-cost averaging

Investing

Students choose their investments using real funds provided by donors

Generous donors provide funds to FGI for our students to invest

Beginning in the third session, students are granted $50/week. They allocate their funds across a set of mutual funds, in order to ensure a diverse portfolio

Vesting

How Students Access Their Investments

Students learn the notion of "vesting," whereby they earn the right to withdraw funds by meeting 3 criteria:

1. Complete the FGI program (attending at least 6 sessions)
2. Graduate high school.
3. Turn 18 years of age

Upon meeting all 3 criteria, volunteers work with students to create their own investment accounts and transfer all of their investments.

A Typical FGI Session

A typical FGI session consists of the following:

Volunteers and students discuss the past week’s financial news

Volunteers break into groups of 4 students each, and teach a new concept, like compounding interest or dollar-cost averaging

Students are granted $20 to invest beginning in week 4 (finishing the program with $100 invested in total)