Financial & Investor Education

Western Shoshone Youth go on a $pending Frenzy

“This was a really fun project and it will help me think about how I will spend my money.”

First Nations staff and consultants worked in partnership with Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians (OST) to provide a financial reality fair titled the “$pending Frenzy.” In light of the historic land claims settlement with the Western Shoshone tribes, First Nations held a simulation for Western Shoshone youth

who would be eligible for large trust settlement payments upon turning 18. The reality fair utilized fake money close to the amount that would be available to youth through their trust settlement payment to give students experience handling a substantial lump of money and how to spend it wisely. There were four total experiential learning events that took place over the course of two days - two in Elko, Nevada, on October 2, 2012, and two in Pyramid Lake, Nevada on October 4, 2012.

The $pending Frenzy served more than 130 students from six different Western Shoshone tribes. The workshops included opportunities to purchase a car, a

house, groceries, and other financial activities. Students could practice visiting a bank to cash their check and put money into savings and try out investing a portion of the money. The evaluation of this event revealed that 83.5% of participating students agreed that the $pending Frenzy model and topics covered were relevant to their life, and 95% stated that they would use the information they learned during the $pending Frenzy to assist them with managing their money.

Find the report about the effort in our Knowledge Center at this link. It’s titled Learning by Doing: Financial Education for Native American Youth Receiving Large Lump-Sum Payouts.

W.K. Kellogg Foundation School-Based Financial Education

Our goal with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation school-based financial education project is to support systemic change that will positively impact the economic security of Native families. We will use the public school setting to offer customized, experiential financial education and Individual Development Accounts to Native youth in several high schools in McKinley County in New Mexico. This project offers bundled services to American Indian families and will help Native people work towards a better economic future.

“Crazy Cash City” Event Reaches 200 Students
“It was really fun! It helped me prepare for life in the real world.”

That’s just one comment from a student among the nearly 200 who participated in First Nations Development Institute’s October 2012 “Crazy Cash City” event in New Mexico. First Nations in partnership with First Financial Credit Union, provided the “Crazy Cash City” money-spending simulation in Gallup, New Mexico, for local high school students, the majority of whom are Native American. The exercise – which was a test of a new pilot program tailored to Native American youth modeled after the National Credit Union’s Mad City Money simulation– was intended as an experiential learning opportunity for kids currently taking a financial literacy class.

The event was held at the Rio West Mall and consisted of six two-hour reality fairs in which the students had to navigate a series of simulated financial tasks and challenges designed to teach basic budgeting and banking skills. It was all in fun – since they were spending play money and not really buying things – but it was also informative and highly interactive.

All participants were given a folder containing a fictitious family profile that listed what their income was, the income of a spouse, the age of any children, and any outstanding debt or benefits they received. The high school kids then visited about 10 booths that provided various choices for housing, transportation, child care and more, and they were asked to make smart financial decisions based on their family profile. At the conclusion of the seminar, the students were expected to have a fully balanced budget that they logged in their check register and budgeting sheet.

Visit the Knowledge Center to read the Crazy Cash City Evaluation Report.

Financial Literacy: Life on Your Own Terms

First Nations Development Institute received a grant from the Daniels Fund to support the Financial Literacy: Life on Your Own Terms curriculum project, which has been piloted with a group of high school students at Gallup Central High School in New Mexico. The purpose of the curriculum project was to institutionalize a culturally appropriate financial and investor education class for high school students. The classes addressed personal finance topics such as responsible use of a credit card, avoiding predatory lenders, understanding banking, car buying tips, safeguarding against identity theft and basic investing skills.

Students at Gallup Central High School Participate in National Financial Capability Challenge
At Gallup Central High School (GCHS), First Nations Development Institute piloted a financial literacy curriculum based on the Building Native Communities series. Working with the school's principal, where more than 90 percent of students are Native American, First Nations received a grant from the Daniels Fund to offer an innovative financial literacy class to high school youth. After nine weeks of instruction, students in the "Financial Literacy: Life on Your Terms" class signed up to take the National Financial Capability Challenge.

The National Financial Capability Challenge was an effort to help high school students develop the knowledge and skills needed to take control of their financial futures. In 2010, high school students nationwide were invited to take a voluntary online exam to demonstrate and to assess their financial knowledge. Based on national results, three students from the GCHS class scored in the top 20th percentile and received certificates.

"I am really proud of my students and what they have accomplished in their classes," stated GCHS instructor Arnold Blum.

FINRA's New Distribution Channels for Investor Education

First Nations received a grant from FINRA(Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) to provide financial and investor education to at least 500 individuals over a three-year period by partnering with the Office of Special Trustee (OST) to provide investor education trainings, with an outcome of changing financial awareness, attitudes and behavior. First Nations will also provide financial and investor education to students in Bureau of Indian Education schools. We are also conducting a national social marketing campaign that emphasizes the importance of saving or investing tribal per capita, or trust payment, wisely. The goal of this marketing campaign is to promote changes in financial awareness, attitudes and behavior by developing and disseminating marketing materials to educate community members about financial management and investing.

Learn more about the work that FINRA supports at http://www.finra.org/.

Celebrating the Success of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians has created a unique financial education online curriculum that can be modeled in other tribal communities to help American Indian youth learn how to manage financial resources. The impact of the online curriculum has been so successful that the Native American Finance Officers Association (NAFOA) awarded it the "Financial Literacy Program of the Year" during its annual spring conference in 2011.

NAFOA noted during the award winner's gathering that economic development is vital to the long-term health and success of a tribe. And, included with the growth of economic development is the financial literacy of tribal members. NAFOA's "Financial Literacy Program of the Year Award" aims to honor a financial literacy program developed and instituted by a tribe. Kathy Dugan from the Eastern Bank of Cherokee Indians and Shawn Spruce, a financial education consultant for First Nations, were on hand to accept the award.

Oklahoma Asset-Building: Promoting Economic Security for Life

First Nations Development Institute received a grant from the Ford Foundation to launch the "Building Economic Security for Life" project. The purpose of the initiative is to promote an asset-building agenda at the state and local levels that will provide income and program strategies to ensure family economic security. First Nations has partnered with Oklahoma Native Asset Coalition and Oklahoma Policy Institute to promote a research agenda that builds on the momentum of family asset-building strategies.

Oklahoma Policy Institute
The Oklahoma Policy Institute (OK Policy) is a member of Oklahoma Assets, a coalition of asset-building practitioners and organizations committed to identifying and strengthening programs and policies that help achieve economic security for Oklahomans. OK Policy, as one of the partnering organizations of Oklahoma Assets, received a grant to develop a series of publications and webinars on financial education. The following is a recent interview with David Blatt, executive director of OK Policy, on the importance of family economic security in Oklahoma.

An Advocate for Economic Security
A Conversation with David Blatt
In a small office in Tulsa, Oklahoma, sits a gentleman fervently reviewing state economic policy and the latest legislation impacting families in the state of Oklahoma. David Blatt, now serving as the executive director of the Oklahoma Policy Institute (OK Policy), recently sat down with First Nations Development Institute staff to discuss why he is part of a growing movement for asset-building programs and financial education for Oklahoman families.

Blatt is recognized as one of the state's leading experts on financial policy, and he has been with the Oklahoma Policy Institute since it was founded in 2008. The Oklahoma Policy Institute is a nonprofit organization dedicated to building a state economy that provides shared prosperity for all Oklahomans through economic opportunity and financial security. OK Policy is a member of Oklahoma Assets, a coalition of asset-building practitioners and organizations committed to identifying and strengthening programs and policies that help achieve economic security for Oklahomans. OK Policy, as one of the partnering organizations of Oklahoma Assets, received a $40,000 grant from First Nations and the Ford Foundation to develop a series of publications and webinars on financial education.

First Nations: What does it mean to you to work towards family economic security in Oklahoma? What hope does your organization provide to the communities you work in?

Blatt: I believe that all families should have access to assets. Everyone should be able to own a home in a good neighborhood. OK Policy is a think tank, and we provide research, policy analysis and a framework for policy changes at the state level. In our financial education work, we focus on the importance of savings, investing and ownership of assets.

First Nations: Why should we continue to invest in asset-building programs?

Blatt: If you are going to have success in any community, you need asset-building programs. Everyone needs access to housing, education, healthcare and financial resources. Building assets leads to the reduction of poverty.

First Nations: What hope will Oklahoma Assets provide to families and communities in Oklahoma?

Blatt: We can bring partners together to make a difference. We can help people become homeowners even open a savings account. A savings account can change a person's life. We can create change in people's lives.

Ask Dr. Per Cap

Ask Dr. Per Cap is a financial advice column to help you travel the winding road toward financial independence. I will draw upon my experiences – some good, some bad – to help you learn skills, tricks and strategies to take control of your financial future. And if we succeed, well, hopefully you won’t make the same mistakes I did because you’ll know better.

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