The UFSC Financial Literacy Program

Objective

UFSC is committed to developing a financial literacy curriculum geared to young adults from the Black community, aged 18 to 24.  The objective of this curriculum is to:

A.      Create informed consumers of financial products and services

B.     Increase participation in capital markets

C.     Set participants on a path to financial independence

D.     Create ambassadors of financial literacy within the Black community

In our research and discussion groups, we have determined that young adults have a peculiar vulnerability to the effects of financial illiteracy, greater than any other subgroup within the Black community.  Young adults between the ages of 18-24 are not only establishing credit but are, for the first time, taking on debt in the form of student loans, credit cards, car loans, mobile phone bills, while paying for general living expenses. 

To address this vulnerability, the UFSC  will develop a Financial Literacy Program.  Our program will have the content, delivery, programming and the human capital in the form powerful Black role models that will force the change toward self-determination, respect and therefore bring lasting positive impact in the financial and economic consciousness of young adults in the Black community.

The program will empower these young adults and charge them with the task of not only changing their own behaviour, but the behaviour of others in the Black community.  Our participants will shed any attitudes that interfere with their ability to become financially fluent and, as a direct result, will gain an appreciation of the value in being fluently bicultural.

Each one of participants in the UFSC Financial Literacy Program will themselves exhibit a measure of impact and influence among their respective peer groups prior to enter the program.  We will deliver a poignant and unforgettable experience in financial literacy that will have an undeniable life-altering impact on each participant.  It is our objective that our message on the importance of financial literacy be spread through the influence of participants, in viral proportions.   We expect nothing less than a shift in the behaviour of our participants and amongst those with whom our participants have influence.

The program curriculum reflects the needs identified by our focus groups. The curriculum will cover the following topics:

Fundamentals of Economics
How the economy and events reported in the news affect their personal finances and decision making

Budgeting
The purpose of a budget, how to start one and more importantly how to keep on track

Credit
Understanding the credit bureau, different types of credit products offered, interest rates and managing debt

Capital Markets
Understanding the purpose of capital markets, the risks and how to participate

Investments
The different type of investments, the risks associated with each and what is compound interest

Insurance
The purpose of insurance, the different types and when to consider  purchasing 

Entrepreneurship
What does it means to be an entrepreneur, how to set up a small business and how get financing

Ultimately, participants will walk away with more than just basic technical skills and tools.  They will acquire an awareness, discovery and appreciation of financial literacy necessary to trigger a behavioural shift.  Participants will approach financial decision making with a level of comfort never before experienced in this generation.