News Room
June 24, 2009
Redwood Credit Union Partners with Santa Rosa School District for Youth Financial Literacy Academy
Accredited Summer Program to Educate High School Students on Money Management Skills
Santa Rosa , CA – This summer, Redwood Credit Union (RCU) will partner with the Santa Rosa School District and the Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce to offer a free 16-hour academy on financial literacy for local high school students. Using the High School Financial Planning Program (HSFPP) created by the National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE), the program will include helpful topics such as budgeting, financial planning, saving and investing, credit and debt management and other life skills related to managing money.
The Financial Literacy Academy will be held at Redwood Credit Union’s Administrative Offices, 3033 Cleveland Avenue in Santa Rosa, August 3 through 6, 2009, from 9:00 am until 1:00 pm each day. Students who will be entering 11th or 12th grade at any Sonoma County high school in the fall of 2009 are eligible to enroll. To register, contact Nancy Miller, Director of Career Pathways and Community Outreach for Santa Rosa City Schools, at (707) 528-5007, or visit www.redwoodcu.org/academy. Enrollment is limited, so students are encouraged to register early. Students of Santa Rosa City Schools may be eligible to earn 1 credit for the course, pending School Board approval.
“We are passionately committed to financial literacy and strongly believe that key financial skills learned at a young age are beneficial for a lifetime,” said Brett Martinez, President & CEO of RCU. Martinez is a strong supporter of financial education, and believes that basic money management – such as balancing a checking account – is an essential life skill that should be required in public school coursework. “Eventually, we would like to see financial management skills made a mandatory part of the state’s high school economics curriculum, so we are piloting this summer session as a way to introduce and examine the process,” Martinez added.
RCU also offers many financial literacy and outreach programs, and hosts a variety of free educational seminars and events for their Members and the community throughout the year. For a list of current seminar offerings, dates and times and to RSVP online, visit www.redwoodcu.org/seminars.
Founded in 1950, RCU is a full-service financial cooperative, offering competitive financial products and services to fulfill consumer and small business financial needs, including checking and savings accounts, to consumer and mortgage lending, deposits, investments and more. The Credit Union also offers comprehensive insurance products and discount auto buying. Anyone living, working or owning a business in 8 North Bay counties, including Sonoma, Marin and Napa can benefit from becoming a Member of Redwood Credit Union, which currently serves 146,000 Members with $1.8 billion in assets. RCU has 15 branch locations from San Francisco to Ukiah. For more information, please call (707) 545-4000 or 1 (800) 479-7928, or visit www.redwoodcu.org.
