Farmers Brings Financial Literacy Program to Schools
CANFIELD, Ohio -- Local students have dedicated more than 5,640 hours this year to the Farmers National Bank Financial Scholars Program using the EverFi-Financial Literacy learning course, the bank reports.
It's the third consecutive year that Farmers has sponsored students’ access to this web-based program, which uses new media technology -- simulations, avatars, gaming and adaptive pathing -- to explain complex financial concepts.
EverFi Inc. is an education technology company focused on teaching, assessing and certifying K-12 and college students in critical life skills. The company teams with major corporations and foundations to provide the programs at no cost to K-12 schools.
The 10-unit course offers six hours of programming aimed at a variety of relevant financial topics. These include credit scores, insurance, student loans, taxes, stocks, 401Ks and other critical concepts associated with financial literacy standards. The course tracks the progress and scores of every student and provides students who complete with a certification in financial literacy, "a valuable mark of distinction on college applications and resumes, the bank said.
Farmers National Bank sponsors the program at 20 area high schools, according to Kevin J. Helmick, president and CEO. “Financial education is a key building block for a successful personal and professional career. We are pleased to be a small part of this foundation for so many local high school students," Helmick said.
Last year the program improved students' financial knowledge from 63% proficiency to 87% proficiency, the bank reported. Students saw significant knowledge gains in investing and taxes and insurance, aggregately increasing their proficiencies by 36%.
SOURCE: Farmers National Bank
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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