CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — 88% of U.S. adults said high school did not “completely prepare” them for how to handle money in the real world, according to a 2023 Ramsey study. The report was compiled by Ramsey Solutions, a company founded by financial talk show host Dave Ramsey.
Local bankers explained to 3NEWS how they are helping Corpus Christi Independent School District students prepare when handling money.
Cindy Barrera, vice president of Frost Bank, teaches investing at the Frost Financial Youth Academy offered at CCISD.
“I experienced it myself,” Barrera said. “It wasn't really talked about in our household, so we found that the kids were actually very enlightened and very excited to learn.”
She said Banks wasn't involved to make the subject scary, but that it wasn't all that scary.
“Everything is very new to them,” Barrera said. “But in reality, that overwhelming feeling turned out to be much easier than they thought.”
Eight in 10 adults say they would have gotten a better start with money if they had learned about personal finance in high school.
Three out of four adults say they often or sometimes feel stressed out because of money.
George Kamel, co-host of Ramsey's radio show, said high school graduates think of credit as free money and how it can affect their lives as they prepare to own a home and start a family. He said he did not understand how it could cause problems.
“That's how I get my car loan and mortgage payments,” Kamel says. “And then all of a sudden you look around and you're an adult and you're drowning in early paychecks and you wonder, is this this? Is this the job and dream that I was promised?”
Twenty-six states in the United States require personal finance education before high school graduation. Texas is not yet among them.
However, the survey also states that many of today's young people are starting to take personal finance courses.
Click here to view the full report.
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