FIN LIT
Suggested Speaking Points
[School Name]
[Date]
Principal
· Students – welcome to the certification ceremony for the PROGRAM NAME.
· For those of you in the room who do not know me, I am NAME, TITLE at SCHOOL NAME. Welcome to our school. Thank you to the parents, speakers, and guests for joining us today.
· Students - I know you have worked very hard in the PROGRAM NAME and today it is time to celebrate your accomplishments.
· In case you did not know, XX schools across CITY participated in PROGRAM NAME this school year.
· FIN LIT: Over the past few months you have learned about opening up your own bank accounts, building your credit score, buying insurance, and explored options to finance higher education. I hope that as you make financial decisions in your daily lives – as I know you all do – that you think back to this experience. This is just the beginning – now its up to you to apply what you learned into your daily lives.
· I want to take a moment to acknowledge the speakers for our ceremony today. Here with us is [NAMES AND TITLES OF SPEAKERS]. Thank you again for being here today.
· We are very grateful to PARTNER REPRESENTATIVE and to PARTNER NAME for their sponsorship of this important program for our school.
· Now – I would like to introduce our first speaker. [BIO AND DETAILS ON SPEAKER]
Partner (2 mins)
· Thank you, NAME, for the introduction and for allowing us to join you today to celebrate the certification of your financial education students.
· It’s an honor to be on this stage with such distinguished local leaders and educators, whose support of the PROGRAM NAME speaks volumes about the importance of this program in CITY.
· OK – so let me ask something of you students in the audience. Raise your hand if you want to be financially independent in the next 5 years. (Pause.) Raise your hand if you plan on living on your own. (Pause). Raise your hand if you know how you are going to be able to finance an independent lifestyle. (Pause) Wow. Look at all those hands! You are all on your way to a bright financial future.
· For the guests and parents in the room who may not know about the program - the PROGRAM NAME is an interactive web-based course that allows students to use real-world situations to learn about finances using gaming and other interactive tools. Students – you will like this – we have found that digital learning methods are an effective way to teach students important critical skills and concepts, like financial education. I hope you felt that the program was fun but also taught you some very important concepts that you will use in your everyday lives.
· On behalf of PARTNER NAME, I would like to thank the special guests and parents for coming here today to celebrate these students’ accomplishments. Thank you to the city leaders, school district leaders, who joined us today because you take financial literacy as seriously as we do. We consider you all valuable partners in this quest to prepare our students for the digital world.
· Thank you to TEACHER NAME, who I have heard has done a phenomenal job implementing this program at your school over the past year.
· Thank you again to PRINCIPAL NAME for having us today and for helping to ensure the success of this program at your school. You have set a great example for other CITY schools to follow.
· And finally, a big congratulations to all of the students for working so hard to earn your certification and to become smart and financially savvy citizens.
· I would now like to introduce NEXT SPEAKER
Political Representative
· Thank you, NAME.
· Good morning, students. I just wanted to say that it is such a pleasure for me to be here today in SCHOOL NAME.
· Now something to think about - no matter which career path you choose in life, you have to start thinking now about your finances. If you plan on going to college after high school, do you know about your student loan options? Do you know how to budget your money so you can save enough to buy a new smartphone? Remember what you learned through the PROGRAM NAME because you will find that your financial behavior will be incredibly important as you continue on through high school, in college, and in a career.
· Congratulations on earning your certification in the PROGRAM NAME. We are incredibly proud of you. These types of public-private partnerships are extremely valuable in order to provide students with innovative resources and new opportunities. And thank you to the other guests who are here today to support digital literacy education in our great city.
· Now I would like to introduce [BIO AND DETAILS ON NEXT SPEAKER]
Political VIP
· Good morning, students. I am thrilled to be here today to celebrate your achievements!
· Hearing about the PROGRAM NAME, and what you all learned over the past few months, is incredible to me. I wish I had a program like this when I was in high school.
· Growing up in today’s world is complicated. How do I know if my bank accounts are safe from identity fraud? How can mobile banking help me save money? How long will it take me to pay off my student loans? These are all difficult questions that you are facing for the first time.
· I am very impressed that you are tackling these issues through the PROGRAM NAME. You all are ahead of the game.
· Remember that the decisions you make about your financial life will set an example for other students in CITY. If you make smart decisions -- such as planning for higher education, being mindful of how much you spend, and building a budget-- other students will take notice and will follow your lead.
· Thank you to PARTNER for your partnership and for helping to prepare our students for the 21st century world. And congratulations to you – students - for completing the program and showing that you are financially responsible citizens.
· Next to speak is [BIO AND DETAILS ON NEXT SPEAKER]
Additional Speaker (2 mins)
· Thank you, PREVIOUS SPEAKER.
· I know that I have had my fair share of financial decisions. From renting my first apartment, to building my credit score, and even deciding how I will save money for retirement. We have all been there. And that is why I am so impressed that you have already gained experience dealing with these issues through the PROGRAM NAME.
· I would like to thank PARTNER for your partnership and allowing CITY schools to participate in this program at no cost. You are helping us to prepare our students for the world and we greatly appreciate that.
· Thank you to the school for setting an example for other CITY schools. We hope that other schools will take this topic as seriously as you have.
· Thank you to everyone who is here in support of this program and financial education for our schools. Let’s continue to band together to help our students navigate our complicated world.
· And finally, congratulations to you – the students – for your success in completing the program and demonstrating your digital skills.
· And now I would like to introduce [BIO AND DETAILS ON NEXT SPEAKER]
Teacher Speaking Points (2 mins)
· Thank you, PREVIOUS SPEAKER.
· I want to congratulate my students for completing the PROGRAM NAME. Although you hear it from me all the time, I hope you realize the importance of this program by looking at the caliber of speakers who made time to be with us today.
· For our guests in the room, I want to provide some background around how we implemented the PROGRAM NAME at the school.
· Over the course of several months, my students went through the web-based curriculum with the expectation that they would complete and pass each of the 7 post-assessment modules. I have been a teacher for NUMBER years and cannot tell you how happy I am to have a program like this, for free, that was so easy to use and engaging for my students. Thank you to PARTNER for allowing me to integrate this program into my curriculum. It has really enhanced my class.
Student Ambassador (2 mins)
· Hi, I’m NAME, and I am a PROGRAM NAME scholar.
· Before TEACHER’s class and completing the PROGRAM NAME, I did not fully understand financial literacy and the consequences of not being financially prepared for my future. For example, GIVE AN EXAMPLE OF A LESSION YOU LEARNED FROM THE PROGRAM:
o I did not realize….
· Describe how you felt about handling your money before participating in the program.
· What was your favorite part of the course? Did you learn anything that surprised you?
· How did the program prepare you for your future? Give an example of how you will use this information in the next year of your life.
· Thank you to TEACHER and PARTNER for helping us to better understand the reality of our financial decisions and congratulations to our class for completing the program.