Junior Achievement of Wisconsin: Junior Achievement fills the void in U.S. financial education

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Jessica Levine; 414-271-0101

jlevine@boelterlincoln.com

Laura Gainor; 414-577-3826

lgainor@jawis.org

Wisconsin Middle School Students Prepare for Tax Day at JA Finance Park

MILWAUKEE (March 25, 2015) – There’s no better time than April – dubbed Financial Literacy Month – to learn the importance of planning for a stable financial future. Since Financial literacy courses aren’t required in every U.S. school, it’s important for parents, teachers and the community to take part in educating young people in money management. However, recent studies reveal alarming findings about the role parents play in their children’s financial education.

A 2015 survey released today by Junior Achievement USA® and The Allstate Foundation reveals that an overwhelming number of parents – over one third – do not discuss financial matters with their children, but 84 percent of teens say their parents are their source for information about money management. In many cases, if young people aren’t learning to manage money responsibly at home, they aren’t learning it at all.

Junior Achievement of Wisconsin (JA) is stepping into this educational void by hosting a Tax Day event Wednesday, April 15 at JA Finance Park®. During the special program, students from Rogers Street Academy and Barack Obama School of Career and Technical Education will learn how to fill out an IRS Form 1040 and submit their tax forms to the JA IRS.

“We are very excited to celebrate Financial Literacy Month and introduce the students to the adult responsibilities that come with Tax Day,” said Tim Greinert, president of Junior Achievement of Wisconsin. “With more than 10,000 students completing the JA Finance Park program this year, it is our hope that we provide them with the education they need to have a successful and financially stable future.”

JA Finance Park combines in-class learning with a day-long visit to the park, a fully interactive, simulated town. Students visit 19 businesses throughout the day, where they learn important financial concepts like savings, debt, credit and interest. The students also practice allocating utility expenses and making personal investments on a set budget.

Financial illiteracy is a pressing issue facing the U.S., however, JA’s interactive programs help fill the void in financial education for K-12 students. For more information about JA and its educational programs go to http://wisconsin.ja.org. To hear from a JA alum about her experience with Junior Achievement go to the JA YouTube channel.

About Junior Achievement of Wisconsin
Junior Achievement of Wisconsin, Inc. is dedicated to educating students about work readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy through experiential, hands-on programs. The organization prepares young people for the real world, showing them how to generate wealth and effectively manage it, create jobs which make their communities more robust and apply entrepreneurial thinking to the workplace. Over 168,000 students in the state of Wisconsin put these lessons into action every year and learn the value of contributing to their communities.