Chairman Johnson Stresses Importance of Financial Education to Local High School Students, Presents President’s Volunteer Service Awards
April 23, 2007, Alexandria, VA – In recognition of President Bush’s and the United States Congress’ designation of April as “Financial Literacy Month”, National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) Chairman JoAnn Johnson visited Woodbridge Senior High School, in Woodbridge, VA, to emphasize the importance of financial education; demonstrate the www.mymoney.gov website; and present the President’s Volunteer Service Award to dedicated student volunteers.
Chairman Johnson shared the essentials of financial education to a classroom of students from the high school’s business department. Afterwards, the Chairman demonstrated the www.mymoney.gov website while the students interacted with the website at their own computer terminals. Chairman Johnson answered questions from the students while guiding them through several helpful resources available via MyMoney.Gov.
“The sooner America’s youth receive the tools and resources of financial education, the better decisions they will make the rest of their lives,” said Chairman Johnson. “As these high school students head to college soon, they will be exposed to countless credit card offers. It is especially important to make them aware of handling these products wisely in order to avoid unnecessary and long term debt. I was impressed with the eagerness these students displayed while navigating through the MyMoney.Gov website and putting this valuable resource to good use.”
Chairman Johnson was appointed to serve as the Chairman of the www.mymoney.gov website subcommittee in 2006, by the U.S. Financial Literacy and Education Commission (FLEC), which is headed by Henry M. Paulson, Secretary, U.S. Department of Treasury.
In recognition of National Volunteer Week this month, Chairman Johnson also presented the President’s Volunteer Service Award to three students who display an outstanding commitment to volunteer service as tellers at the “Viking Vault”, the student-run credit union located inside the high school, and for their service throughout the community.
The “Viking Vault” is a result of the partnership with Prince William County Public Schools and Fort Belvoir Federal Credit Union. The fully operational branch provides a valuable learning experience by giving high school students access to a wide variety of services and products, including checking and savings accounts; loans; and credit card accounts. Students are encouraged to open basic savings accounts to save for such events as holiday gift giving, high school ring orders, and prom activities. Each year a group of interested students volunteer to manage the branch. Their responsibilities include developing and executing business plans while teaching members the value of financial management.
My-Hang (Maria) McNealy, Amanda Bergmann, and Charles N. Ofori, Jr. received the award. My-Hang (Maria) McNealy, is a junior at WSHS. Her extracurricular activities include: Volunteer teller of the Viking Vault student credit union; volunteer in her church’s nursery; Future Business Leaders of America; ASIA club; and the tennis team. Amanda Bergmann is a junior at WSHS. Her extracurricular activities include: Volunteer teller at the Viking Vault student credit union; Future Business Leaders of America; Girl Scouts; swim team; coaching; and lifeguard of Lake Ridge pools. Charles N. Ofori, Jr., is a senior at WSHS. His extracurricular activities include: Volunteer teller at the Viking Vault student credit union; Future Business Leaders of America; and SCA Class Representative.
In his 2002 State of the Union address, President George W. Bush issued a challenge to all Americans to make time to help their neighbors, communities, and Nation through service. In 2003, he created the President's Volunteer Service Award Program as a way to thank and honor Americans who, by their demonstrated commitment and example, inspire others to engage in volunteer service. In his January 2002 State of the Union Address, President Bush renewed his challenge for Americans to make a difference in their communities through volunteer service by creating USA Freedom Corps, an Office of the White House, to strengthen and expand volunteer service. For more information on responding to the President’s Call to Service, please visit www.volunteer.gov or call 1-877-USA-CORPS to find an existing volunteer service opportunity in your area or to find more information about service programs, including national service programs such as the Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and Citizen Corps.
The National Credit Union Administration is the independent federal agency that regulates, charters and supervises federal credit unions. NCUA, with the backing of the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, also operates and manages the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund (NCUSIF), insuring the deposits of over 85 million account holders in all federal credit unions and the majority of state-chartered credit unions.
|
