Two Timpanogos students trying to alter dangerous lack of financial literacy in kids
Future Business Leaders of America president 18-year-old Daniel Ruales teaches a Spanish immersion class of 6th graders at Orchard Elementary School about fundamental economic principles.
17-year-old Austin Vandyke, vice president of Timpanogos High School's Future Business Leaders of America club, teaches elementary school students financial literacy principles.
Mountain America Credit Union representative Rebekah Barlow presents at Timpanogos High School to an auditorium of students on how to establish good credit. An upcoming seminar at the Provo school on Jan. 7 teaches students smart ways to purchase or finance a vehicle.
Two Timpanogos High School students are touring Utah County schools.
During those visits, they’re introducing their younger peers to financial literacy lessons and fundamental economics concepts.
Daniel Ruales, president of the Future Business Leaders of America academic club, and his colleague Austin Vandyke, acting vice president and club treasurer, visit local elementary and junior high schools to present concepts such as credit and savings and also talk about supply and demand.
“I was doing these presentations and by my senior year, which is this year, I kind of realized how much it’s needed out there,” said Ruales, who has been involved with the high school club for three years, “and how much kids don’t actually know about basic things such as like budgeting and saving and credit cards.
“While we’re going through the PowerPoint and we say what a credit card is and how it’s a loan, a really common question is: ‘What is a loan?’ A lot of kids don’t know what it is, exactly.”
Ruales and Vandyke have visited more than 10 local schools since September and lead 45-minute discussions and do learning activities with 5th- through 7th-grade students at their respective schools.
Many young people are oblivious to basic notions of credit and struggle to grasp the differences between debit and credit cards. Vandyke said youth are using these financial tools earlier in their lives but lack the information needed to handle them responsibly.
“Everything is happening to kids so much sooner than it did to us, people who are in high school now and people who are in college now,” he said. “Nowadays, it’s not uncommon to have a 11- or 12-year-old with a debit card or even a credit card.
“It’s kind of insane because a lot of them, they have no idea — they have no idea what the difference is or what it means.”
FBLA partnered with Mountain America Credit Union and the two club leaders have organized a Jan. 9 seminar geared for youth on how to purchase and finance a vehicle.
The event is open to local youth and it will be held in the Timpanogos High School auditorium and starts at 12:15 p.m. A free pizza lunch will be provided for goers during the seminar, which will be led by Orem Mountain America assistant branch manager Rebekah Barlow.
One way Ruales and Vandyke teach basic economic concepts to young students is using a mock auction to demonstrate supply and demand. During the school presentations, students earn plastic coins for taking notes or otherwise participating in the discussion. The two high school-aged instructors then explain there is a certain amount of supply, the one item up for auction, and then the demand determines the price.
Students can bid on cups of Ramen noodles, cans of Vienna sausages or other small prizes. Ruales and Vandyke point out that if several students want an item, there will be more bids and the price will go up. If no one wants an item or if one or two students place bids, the price is going to remain low.
Students learn that people have unlimited wants and needs, and that businesses must use limited resources to produce products and services to meet market demands.
Ruales said the community work FBLA does is unique in how it presents information.
“I realized pretty quick that youth teaching youth — we have more of a connection with the kids because I can relate to them a lot more,” the 18-year-old said. “I love being able to use the knowledge I’ve learned and going to connect with them so they cannot be clueless in the future.”
The two Timpview students have already visited schools including Oak Canyon, Lakeridge and Orem junior high schools this school year and will present at Canyon Junior High School in the coming weeks.
Promoting financial responsibility and awareness is part of Mountain America’s charter as a member of the National Endowment for Financial Education. Barlow said the credit union advocates for youth financial literacy by offering educational assistance to high schools throughout Utah and other area branches.
“From my generation to this generation, so much has happened. It has gone warp speed,” Barlow said. “I didn’t have a cell phone in high school and they have these smartphones where you can do everything on it. Everything happens so fast. It’s so important in this age and with this pace that we get this instilled in them so they know what to expect.
“Especially for the youth, it’s a huge success for them to have an understanding of credit and savings for their future. It prepares them for life.”
Vandyke said young people might put themselves in a position in the future where they have not established any credit and cannot buy a house or a car. He said they won’t secure a decent interest rate on either of those things, because they were never properly taught what a credit score is actually used for.
“They don’t know it’s not a good thing to have a credit card max out,” Vandyke said. “They don’t know that it affects their credit. They don’t even know what credit is half the time; they don’t know what a credit score is.
“These kids are being handed these amazing tools but aren’t being told how to use them.”
HOW TO FINANCE A VEHICLE
What: Seminar aimed at teaching youth on smart ways of purchasing or financing a vehicle.
When: Jan. 9, 12:15 p.m.
Where: Timpanogos High School auditorium, 1450 N. 200 East, Orem,
Info: (801) 610-8175
More: Seminar offered through Future Business Leaders of America high school academic club in partnership with Mountain America Credit Union.