Minster Bank maintains a community-first focus by investing time, energy, resources and passion throughout the year to ensure area school children have access to fun activities that teach financial literacy.
Assistant Branch Manager Natalie Williams of the Vandalia-Butler location shares more about the financial outreach she facilitates in the Montgomery County schools and how she’s looking forward to growing the program.
Minster Bank’s Financial Literacy Outreach for Children of All Ages
Minster Bank leads financial literacy activities and programs for several schools in the communities we serve.
“I focus on facilitating financial literacy programs in the Montgomery County market. This year, we’ve led financial programs and classes in Northmont High School, E.J. Brown Middle School and also for high school students in the Montgomery County Educational Service Center,” said Williams.
Financial literacy programs for the upper-grade levels primarily focus on budgeting and credit. In addition, students learn what it means to have a job, pay bills and determine wants from needs.
Outreach activities are not limited to older students — children as young as five or six years old benefit from Minster Bank’s financial literacy efforts too.
“We have a special program for the younger children that involves buying stickers at our sticker store with pennies,” Williams added. “Children learn the value of money in this fun activity.”
In the sticker store activity, students get 10 cents each to spend in the store. Every student has a picture of a piggy bank that they can decorate and keep their pennies.
Upper-level elementary students can participate in a Thanksgiving meal project or a lemonade stand. The Thanksgiving meal activity teaches the children about planning, budgeting and shopping for the most cost-efficient meal by comparing prices and using coupons.
The lemonade stand activity teaches students how to make a profit, where they learn about expenses, income and risks.
“We also have a Jeopardy game that teaches about financial literacy and a money tree activity,” said Williams. “The money tree explains why people spend money — as the children earn money, they can place a leaf on the tree to see how money can grow.”
Additionally, Minster Bank serves some of the younger ages in summer camps and through programming at the Dayton Metro Library.
Future Youth Financial Literacy Programs and Room for Growth
Minster Bank is partnering with the Montgomery County Educational Service Center to offer quarterly financial literacy programs on a variety of topics that can help students find success with life skills, including money management and banking.
Williams and her team will also help students who are currently working to set up bank accounts where they can deposit and manage their paychecks.
“The Montgomery County Education Service Center is working to enhance financial literacy programs within Montgomery County,“ said Williams. “I’ve been fortunate to work with them on more career-minded workshops and expos where students can interview our team about what it’s like to work in the finance world.”
Williams has taught topics on budgeting, lending, interest rates and credit cards to sophomores in a business technology class at the Ponitz Career Technology Center and looks forward to ongoing opportunities there.
To learn more about the youth financial literacy outreach programs Minster Bank offers, visit MinsterBank.com/outreach.
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