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Message from the FDIC
 April
is Financial Literacy Month in the United States, a period when government
agencies, private organizations and community groups are asked to raise
awareness about how a financial education can give people the skills
they need to save money, borrow wisely, buy their own home, and otherwise
build
the assets they need to live a better life. In most ways, though, it's
just another month for the FDIC and our Money Smart partners. That's
because the FDIC is always promoting financial education to the public,
either directly through our Money Smart curriculum and other FDIC educational
products and services, or indirectly though our partnerships with financial
institutions, state and federal agencies, non-profit groups and other organizations.
Money
Smart…At a Glance
- A free, award-winning financial
education program from the FDIC
- Primarily focused on helping
low- and moderate-income adults develop money-management
skills
- Two versions –one for
classroom use (in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean
and Vietnamese), the other for computer-based, self-paced
learning (in English and Spanish)
- Classes offered through an
extensive network of Money Smart "partners," including
financial institutions, non-profit organizations
and government agencies
- Since 2001, about 495,000
people have taken Money Smart classes and
95,000 new banking relationships have been established
To
learn more, start at Money
Smart Home. |
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In this issue of Money Smart News, we are highlighting
one area of financial education that the recent tragedy in the Gulf Coast
states raised awareness
of for far too many Americans. When Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit last
year, among the first steps taken by the FDIC and other government agencies
was to help connect evacuees with their financial institutions, so they
could get access to cash, replace lost bank cards and records, and otherwise
function financially during the emergency. Here you'll find a collection
of tips and information that financial educators can use in their lessons
to help people prepare for the possibility that a flood, fire or some
similar event could seriously impair their ability to conduct their day-to-day
financial
affairs.
Also find out about a page on the FDIC Web site that follows the progress
of a few Money Smart partners around the country that are trying
different approaches to financial literacy and have agreed to provide
the FDIC with
periodic progress reports. We're calling these organizations -- mostly
non-profits or public/private-sector coalitions -- our "model sites." Their
strategies, challenges and successes will be featured for the benefit
of other Money Smart partners looking for new or different ways
of doing things, especially approaches that have been "consumer tested." We hope
you'll visit that Web page now and again, and that you'll always
come away with a useful new idea or two.
The FDIC also wants to hear new ideas from you, too. That's
why we encourage all Money Smart partners to send us news about
their programs and accomplishments. Some of the best submissions are
already featured
on the "Money Smart Success Stories" page of this
newsletter, and more will be published in the future. We also encourage
you to contact your regional Community
Affairs Officer to
make a suggestion or ask a question. Our goal is to continue helping
consumers and strengthening local communities by promoting financial education
in
America, during Financial Literacy Month and throughout the year.
Sandra L. Thompson
Acting Director
FDIC Division of Supervision and Consumer Protection
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