UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — April 2020 may be a month of financial uncertainty — for governments, companies, universities and individuals, but the Sokolov-Miller Family Financial and Life Skills Center at Penn State has a slate of programming for Financial Literacy Month this April and is offering help to anyone in the University community who is anxious about their financial future.
“Financial uncertainty, at any time, can be stressful,” Rizk said. “We want to help empower people to make the best choices they can. It’s especially important now that people feel like they are in control of their finances.”
Statistics show that financial literacy education is badly needed in the United States. Only 25 states require an economics course for K-12 education, an increase of three since the Council for Economic Education last surveyed the nation in 2018. The council's 2020 report also shows that 21 states require some kind of personal finance course, a net increase of four since 2018. The Sokolov-Miller Family Financial and Life Skills Center is helping to meet that need for Penn Staters.
The center has a number of virtual events scheduled for the month.
On April 20, the center will offer an "Investing for Young Women" panel featuring Erin Weber and Nicole Halbrendt. Attendees can attend the Zoom session using this link from 6 to 7:30 p.m.
Weber is a certified financial planner and certified personal finance counselor at The Weber Group at Hefren-Tillotson Inc., a Pittsburgh-based wealth-management firm. She also serves as the advisory board president at Penn State New Kensington. She can be heard on the KDKA News Radio segment “Hefren-Tillotson’s Your Money and You,” and has been featured on other news programs. Along with resourceful staff and students at Penn State New Kensington, Weber has helped to build up the culture of financial literacy education at the campus.
Nicole Halbrendt, a biobehavioral health major in the College of Health and Human Development, with a biology minor, is a financial literacy ambassador at Penn State through the Sokolov-Miller Family Financial and Life Skills Center. Part of her role at the center is counseling fellow students (with all information kept confidential) on their financial situation and helping them on their way to attaining their goals.
In addition to the "Investing for Young Women" panel, the center will hold its two regularly scheduled webinars on April 7 and 21. The April 7 "After Graduation" webinar will focus on what students should plan for after their graduation, such as the acceptance of employment and what to watch for; 10 principles you should know for financial literacy; factoring your financial future into present plans; and strategies for reaching financial freedom and security in life. Find the Zoom link here.
The "Salary Negotiation" webinar on April 21 will help attendees to research market-based research to prepare for negotiation, techniques and strategies, and how to apply this knowledge in practice. Click here for the Zoom link. Additionally, self-study modules are available here from “MoneyCounts: A Penn State Financial Literacy Series.”
To further celebrate Financial Literacy month, look for tips from Penn State social media accounts covering budgeting, credit cards, student loans, and saving and investing. Follow the Office of Undergraduate Education at @psu_undergrad on Instagram and Twitter.
Students can schedule a remote meeting with the Sokolov-Miller Family Financial and Life Skills Center in Starfish. Most consultations last about an hour, but there is no limit to the number of consultations students can schedule. All information discussed in private consultations is kept confidential.
The Sokolov-Miller Family Financial and Life Skills Center offers services to the entire Penn State community and is part of Penn State Undergraduate Education, the academic administrative unit that provides leadership and coordination for University-wide programs and initiatives in support of undergraduate teaching and learning at Penn State.
Learn more about Undergraduate Education at undergrad.psu.edu.
