25 Hoosier Banker September 2014 About the Author Frank Keating was named president and chief executive officer of the American Bankers Association in 2011. His appointment followed seven years of service as president and CEO of the American Council of Life Insurers and after serving two terms as governor of Oklahoma. Keating’s 30-year career in law enforcement and public service included stints as an FBI agent, U.S. attorney and state prosecutor, and Oklahoma House and Senate member. Author of three award-winning children’s biographies, he earned an undergraduate degree from Georgetown University, a law degree from the University of Oklahoma and is the recipient of five honorary degrees. The author can be reached at: fkeating@aba.com. FEATURE When the Gallup Organization released its annual Economy and Personal Finance Poll earlier this year, the results confirmed a growing year-to-year concern for young adults: how to pay for college tuition or pay off college loans. More than one in five adults aged 18 to 29 identified these college costs as the biggest financial challenge their families were dealing with. Among the other issues young adults cited were: lack of money/low wages (15 percent); housing costs (14 percent); and bills/credit cards/debt (10 percent). The good news is that these personal financial management issues are in the wheelhouse of the American Bankers Association’s Get Smart About Credit program. Now in its 12th year, Get Smart About Credit brings volunteer bankers like you together with young people to help them develop responsible credit habits. Our industry’s financial education efforts are much-needed. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, more than 40 percent of U.S. students – more than in any other country – reported receiving financial education in their classrooms from private-sector individuals, such as bankers or other volunteers. On Get Smart About Credit Day – Oct. 16 – and throughout the fall, bankers will be doing just that. They’ll be delivering lessons to teens and young adults on managing three financial challenges: paying for college; building good credit habits; and protecting their identity. These life lessons are designed to give young adults an edge in mastering personal finance and in taking control of their financial futures. For example we are encouraging them to: • Take control and responsibility over their finances by creating budgets and sticking to them, including planning for unexpected expenses such as car repairs; • Understand the responsibilities and benefits of credit; • Utilize their bank and valuable services, such as check-cashing, debit cards, online banking, balance alerts, personal loans and direct deposit, as well as asking for help and advice from parents or their bankers. Paying for college and managing college loan debt are significant Amplify is a public relations and grassroots tool designed to help rebuild the image of banking. Developed by the American Bankers Association, Amplify is available to all bankers, both ABA members and nonmembers, free of charge. Among other offerings, Amplify provides quality financial literacy materials. One example is a script for a 30-35 minute presentation, comA Growing Need for Financial Education Amplify Your Efforts With Financial Education Resources concerns. So, too, are meeting housing costs and managing personal debt; these issues are all linked. Bankers can fill a need – and groom a new generation of bank customers – by providing wise counsel on these personal financial management issues. If your bank has not participated in any young adult financial education program before, please consider doing so this year. The need seems to grow every year. So, too, must our industry’s response. t plete with handouts, ideal for teaching financial identity to youth. This lesson would coordinate well with Get Smart About Credit programming. To access, register at amplifybankers.com, then click on the Fall Financial Education window. Go to the linked phrase, “Lesson – with worksheets,” which connects to the materials. t
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