Securities Regulators to Talk Financial Literacy With Students

Washington, D.C., Nov. 13, 2009 — The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced a new financial literacy outreach program to promote financial literacy to elementary school students.

Project CHANGE: "Creating Habits and Awareness for the Next Generation's Economy" is a joint partnership between the SEC, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and the Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy.

On November 20, top officials from the SEC, FINRA and Jump$tart will visit 18 elementary schools throughout the country to teach a class on financial literacy. They will share advice on saving, spending and sharing money from a curriculum based on the national standards for financial literacy in grades four through six.

"While we are experiencing a financial crisis that's one of the worst in decades, the financial literacy of high school students has fallen to its lowest level ever, with 73.9 percent of students failing Jump$tart's 2008 national survey," said SEC Chairman Mary L. Schapiro. "Teaching children about money is an investment in the future, because an investment in financial literacy can pay a lifetime of dividends."

In addition to on-site financial literacy presentations, FINRA will donate a slingpack containing financial literacy tools to each child participating in the program. FINRA will also provide every child in the selected schools with a moonjar, a unique tool to encourage children to learn about "saving," "spending" and "sharing." In addition, "money-related" games and books will be donated to participating schools.

The following schools will be participating in the inaugural Project CHANGE visits from securities regulators:

- Atlanta - Rivers Elementary School
- Boca Raton, Fla. - Alexander D. Henderson University
- Boston - Joyce Kilmer Elementary School (West Roxbury, Mass.)
- Chicago - Keller Elementary Gifted Magnet School
- Denver - Lincoln Elementary School
- Fort Worth - S.S. Dillow Elementary School
- Kansas City - Stony Point North Elementary School
- Los Angeles - Open Magnet Charter School
- Miami - Dunbar Elementary School
- New Orleans - International School Of Louisiana
- New York - New Explorations, Science, Tech & Math School
- Philadelphia - William M. Meredith School
- Salt Lake City - Ridgecrest Elementary School
- San Francisco - Robert Stevenson Elementary School
- Seattle - Sacajawea Elementary School
- Washington D.C.
     . Thurgood Marshall Elementary School (District of Columbia)
     . Ashlawn Elementary School (Arlington, Va.)
     . Cannon Road Elementary School (Silver Spring, Md.)