PROVIDENCE – General Treasurer Seth Magaziner says the Ocean State doesn’t measure up when it comes to educating students about personal finance.
Magaziner’s office recently released a “white paper” report calling for a greater level of “high-quality” personal finance instruction in Rhode Island public schools.
ISO 9001:2026: A Practical Opportunity to Build for What’s Next
For Rhode Island manufacturers, ISO 9001 has been much more than a certificate on the…
Learn More
Nationwide, 36 states guarantee access to personal finance education in their public-school curriculums, but Rhode Island does not, according to the general treasurer’s office.
“As soon as young adults turn 18, they are faced with financial decisions that can either help them achieve their greatest dreams or threaten them with financial ruin,” Magaziner said.
“Unfortunately,” he added, “too many young people in Rhode Island are not receiving financial literacy education in school and are unprepared to make financial decisions that will affect the rest of their lives.”
Titled “Fallen Behind: Rhode Island’s Personal Finance Crisis and the Urgent Need for Stronger Personal Finance Education in Public Schools,” the white paper provides an overview of the effects that a lack of personal finance know-how has on young people in the state. In addition, the paper provides a list of low- and no-cost resources now available to educators, along with a list of nine recommendations to increase financial literacy and improve financial outcomes for Rhode Island students.
While the state Department of Education has published voluntary standards for teaching personal finance, only a third of high school graduates in the Ocean State are receiving financial education, the general treasurer’s office said.
Among Magaziner’s recommendations is a requirement that all public schools offer a course that includes personal finance instruction aligned with the state’s standards by the 2019-2020 academic year. School districts should have the freedom to decide how to make that instruction available, Magaziner said, so students are able to demonstrate understanding of personal finance in order to graduate, beginning with the class of 2022.
The white paper can be downloaded at www.treasury.ri.gov/FallenBehind.
Scott Blake is a PBN staff writer. Email him at Blake@PBN.com.
