Deborah
A college education gets more expensive each year. With a class full of students from every economic background, many of whom are immigrants, Deborah Gerbo's first challenge in teaching personal finance is to convince students that affording a university is not out of the question.
That's why she includes an entire unit called the "Cost of Higher Education" in her class at Oro Valley Arizona's Immaculate Heart High School - "beginning with the cost of not getting a higher education," Ms. Gerbo says, explaining without a higher degree, students' future earnings are often limited.
Last year, her students created their own PowerPoint presentations on various questions students might ask as they ponder how to finance their college educations, including looking at the types of aid, researching FAFSA, identifying sources, and learning how to apply for money. "The message is that with a lot of well-spent effort they can go to a four-year college," she says.
Her students not only learned that attending college is possible, they also found some surprising funding sources. "I even had one student identify a scholarship for paintballing - his favorite 'sport,'" Ms. Gerbo says. "By the end of our study, all of my students felt like a college education is within their financial grasp."
The class doesn't stop there. It's also a great way to teach math concepts, Ms. Gerbo says. "What I like about this unit is that it is so relevant," she says. "It's a great way to introduce concepts such as interest, finance charges and budgets." In fact, the second semester of the two-semester course focuses on finances after college until retirement, such as investments, budgeting, home buying and retirement planning.
What's in store for Ms. Gerbo's students after class? That is, before they attend college? This year, they will combine their individual projects into one Final Presentation for the entire school.
"Having them speak to the whole school will be so much more effective, I think, in convincing their fellow students that they, too, can afford a college education," she says. "There is some form of aid for everybody, not just the super-smart or the destitute. High school students don't realize how diverse the forms of aid are, how accessible they are if they're just willing to work hard to obtain them."
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