This Financial Literacy Month, we reached out to educators and mentors in the FGI community to share their perspectives on why investing education matters. Dr. Loretta Evivie is a Professor of Practice of Leadership at the McColl School of Business at Queens University of Charlotte, one of FGI's college partners. She brings both academic expertise and a deep belief in experiential learning to her work. We asked her three questions about financial literacy, investing education, and what helps students truly understand money.
Why do you believe financial literacy education is important for young people today?
Financial Literacy education is important for young people today because it empowers them to make informed decisions that result in a holistic life. Almost every aspect of life has financial implications - health, career, food, security/safety, housing, transportation, clothing, entertainment/travel, education, communication, etc. Through financial literacy young people learn about budgets, credit card/debt management, savings and investments among others.
How can learning about investing help students develop a longer-term perspective when thinking about money?
Learning about investing exposes students to concepts of savings, earning passive income on savings/investments (compound interest/compound returns), and the benefits of delayed gratification. There are so many examples that can be shared with students to illustrate the growth of diversified investments over time. Financial security/wealth provides one with various options in life, for example when faced with emergencies, retirement options, the ability to contribute/leave a legacy towards quality of life and standard of living in society, etc.
In your experience as an educator, what helps financial concepts “click” for students?
In addition to explaining concepts in oral, written, and visual formats digitally and non-digitally, illustrating concepts via experiential learning is one of the best ways to engage students. The $100 that students are given after completion of the First-Generation Investors (FGI) program provides a true real-life experience that helps various financial concepts "click" for students because they are now really experiencing the various factors that impact the financial markets in addition to their own decisions.
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