04.15.2008

More than 10,000 Bankers To Teach Savings Skills on April 29

WASHINGTON—In written testimony submitted to the House Financial Services Committee today, the American Bankers Association explained the role that banks play in improving financial literacy for consumers.

Calling attention to Teach Children to Save Day, an annual event hosted by volunteer bankers across the country, Arthur R. Connelly, chairman of South Shore Savings Bank and chairman-elect of ABA, noted that 10,603 bankers have pledged to participate in this year’s program—more than double the 4,819 registered at this same time last year.

“As these numbers show, bankers fully embrace their role as financial educators and especially so during these tough economic times,” said Connelly. “Our individual institutions and our industry as a whole are uniquely suited to helping stop the cycle of financial illiteracy.”

Financial Education is Important and Bankers Are Actively Involved.

In his testimony, Connelly said basic money management skills are often lacking in adults today and many parents feel unprepared to teach their kids about money. To help address this problem, Connelly testified that thousands of banks across the country, including South Shore Savings Bank, are taking the lead in communities nationwide with financial education programs.

“We have found, and teachers agree, that in-school banks are a great way to impart financial education as they provide opportunities for students to experience real life financial transactions in a safe environment,” Connelly said, describing South Shore Saving Bank’s in-school bank branch.

ABA Continues to Promote and Provide Resources to Advance Financial Education Outreach.

Connelly stated that the ABA promotes financial education through its 501(c)3 subsidiary, the ABA Education Foundation. The Foundation sponsors national programs that encourage collaborative, industry-wide efforts to educate consumers on practical money management. In addition, it provides resources that help individual banks start or enhance a financial education program.

Connelly added that the Foundation’s Teach Children to Save and Get Smart About Credit programs have helped nearly 55,000 bankers teach basic money management skills to some 2.6 million students.

Collaboration and Individual Efforts Create a Variety of Choices.

“The key to improving financial literacy is to interconnect varying resources and initiatives to promote greater efficiency, while encouraging development of other innovations,” he added, comparing the evolution of financial education to the U.S. Highway system.

“The ABA Education Foundation benefits from working with other organizations. Yet it is important to bear in mind that there are certain limits to collaboration,” Connelly clarified.

In closing comments of his statement, Connelly stressed the importance of financial education in our increasingly complex world.

“The ABA Education Foundation is working to provide bankers with the tools they need to enhance their individual programs as well as national programs that banks can support as an industry,” he added. “Because the issue of financial education is so important, we all need to work together to create programs that best meet the needs of all Americans.”

The ABA Education Foundation, a non profit subsidiary of the American Bankers Association, is committed to developing and providing education programs that lead to financial literacy. For more than 80 years, we have supported the banking industry’s efforts to teach personal finance skills in schools and communities across the country. The programs we provide are specifically and uniquely created for young children, teenagers and adults to provide them with the skills they need to budget, save, and manage credit. For more information, visit http://www.abaef.com or call 1-800-BANKERS.

Note to editors: For the complete testimony, visit www.aba.com and click on “Government Relations” and select “Testimonies.”