Financial Literacy in High Schools: VSCPA Letter to Virginia Board of EducationFebruary 14, 2006 Virginia Board of Education Re: Virginia Board of Education's public comment on "Regulations Establishing Standards For Accrediting Public Schools in Virginia (SOA), 8 VAC 20-131-10 et seq." Dear Virginia Board of Education, The Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants (VSCPA) sincerely thanks the Virginia Board of Education and the Virginia Department of Education for the opportunity to provide comment on the Virginia Standards for Accreditation. On behalf of its 8,000 CPA members, the VSCPA urges the Board of Education to adopt new "Requirements for Graduation" (section 8 VAC 20-131-50) to include, at the minimum, a half-credit of personal finance education for all Virginia high school students. This is a critical issue facing our young adults, and the future of state and national economies. The VSCPA urges you, Virginia's leaders in education, to be on the cutting edge by advocating for educational requirements that increase economic and financial literacy of Virginia's youth. The VSCPA applauds the Board's decision to allow Salem High School to become the first school in Virginia to require a personal finance course for graduation. The VSCPA strongly encourages the Board of Education to expand this initiative and establish the requirement for all Virginia high schools. During the 2005 General Assembly session, the VSCPA lent its support to SB 950 mandating economic education and financial literacy objectives for Virginia's middle and high schools, and we are a long-standing advocate of educational initiatives that increase the financial knowledge and fiscal responsibility of Virginia's youth. Governor Mark Warner has applauded the VSCPA Financial Fitness program — designed to improve the fiscal health of young adults and all Virginians. In 2004 and 2005, Governor Warner proclaimed the third week in October as Financial Fitness Week in Virginia at the VSCPA's request. In his proclamation, Governor Warner states, "It is incumbent the Commonwealth support initiatives which promote and advance financial literacy." The proclamation also notes that national statistics show the United States is suffering from a decline in the level of financial literacy among its citizens, and in fact, more than half of Americans lack a basic understanding of how to prepare for their short- and long-term financial needs. Other studies show children's spending has roughly doubled every 10 years for the past three decades and tripled in the 1990s. Kids ages 4–12 spent $2.2 billion in 1968 and $4.2 billion in 1984. By 1994, the figure increased to 17.1 billion, and by 2002 their spending exceeded $40 billion. The 2004 National Financial Literacy Survey Among High School Students by the Jump$tart Coalition on Personal Financial Literacy, administered in 33 states, measured 12th graders' level of knowledge of personal finance and money management basics. On average, 65.5 percent of students who participated in the 2004 survey failed the exam and 6.1 percent scored a C or better. A failing grade was based upon a typical scale used by many public schools around the nation (90-100%=A, 80-89%=B, etc.). The VSCPA and our CPA members are assisting Salem High School with their efforts to implement the personal finance course requirement for graduation, and we are happy to serve as a resource to the Virginia Board of Education and Virginia Department of Education in implementing a personal finance graduation requirement for all Virginia high schools. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact VSCPA Government Affairs Director Erin Collins, ecollins@vspca.com, or VSCPA Communications Director Tina Lambert, tlambert@vscpa.com, at (800) 733-8272 if we can be of assistance. Again, the VSCPA sincerely appreciates the opportunity to participate in the public comment process for Virginia Standards of Accreditation. Thank you for your time and consideration. Sincerely, Douglas M. Marshall III, CPA Thomas M. Berry Jr., CAE CC: Ralph L. "Bill" Axselle Jr. LAST UPDATED 2/14/2006
This content has not yet been rated.
|
||||||||||||||||
Comments