May 10, 2010 As one of the lead sponsors and presenters, Maine's credit unions again reinforced their strong commitment to financial literacy at the state's first-ever Financial Literacy Summit held on Friday, May 7, at the Augusta Civic Center. Nearly 175 teachers from across Maine participated in this event, which was organized by the State's Office of Securities and Maine Jump$tart Coalition, of which Maine's credit unions are represented on its board of directors. The day-long event featured keynote speakers including Laura Levine, Executive Director of the National Jump$tart Coalition, Dr. Jeanne Hogarth of the Federal Reserve, Governor John Baldacci and former Governor Angus King. In addition, there were a number of breakout sessions for attendees to exchange ideas and learn about some of the initiatives and resources available to help bring financial education to more students and schools.
Two of the breakout sessions featured credit union representatives as presenters. Donna Steckino, President/CEO of Community CU, presented at a session on Maine Based Community Programs for Financial Literacy. Steckino spoke about the Financial Fitness - Money Management Experience fairs that she helped to start in Maine. The Fairs, which started in 2004, provide students with an opportunity to participate in a real-life exercise at the age of 22 and make decisions on spending, budgeting, living, credit and more. Since the first fair, more than 30 have been held across Maine and 7,500 students have attended one of these fairs. Many of the teachers at the workshop were interested in having a fair at their school and Steckino responded, "We are working to expand the number of fairs and will continue to do so moving forward. Maine credit unions were innovators in this concept and are eager to reach even more students. The response from teachers and students who have attended one of our fairs has been so positive and, judging by the packed room here today, interest in this type of activity is high."
In another breakout session on Leveraging Technology Resources to Foster Financial Literacy, Rick Lachance, President/CEO of Maine Education CU and Mike Sheffer, Director of Education for FoolProof, gave a presentation on FoolProof, an online financial education program that is free to schools and teachers to help teach young people about money, financial responsibility and the realities of the free enterprise system. Credit unions are a strategic partner of FoolProof. Maine Education CU was the first credit union in Maine to adopt FoolProof and Lachance said educators and students have both been impressed by the quality of the FoolProof program. The Maine Credit Union League became an official FoolProof partner in late 2009 and the number of credit unions offering FoolProof continues to grow. For more information on FoolProof, click here.
At the end of the day, Governor Baldacci spoke about the importance of financial education in schools and singled out Maine credit unions for being "leaders in helping bring financial education to students across Maine."
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