3/25/2022

LIMA, Ohio—Superior Credit Union and Putnam County OSU Extension will host the 10th annual Putnam County Superior Financial Education Day on Tuesday, March 29, 2022 from 9:00 am until 2:00 pm. The event provides an informative and interactive financial education program for area high school students. The event will be held in the Ottawa-Glandorf High School gymnasium.

Media is strongly encouraged to attend.

Students from the following Putnam County high schools will attend: Columbus Grove, Continental, Ft. Jennings, Kalida, Leipsic, Miller City-New Cleveland, Ottawa-Glandorf, Ottoville, and Pandora-Gilboa. Approximately 400 students will attend the event.

The Real Money, Real World program offered through the Putnam County OSU Extension Office allows students to learn through hands-on experiences about costs of living on their own, making decisions, and evaluating the consequences of their decisions. Students are assigned an occupation and family situation and given a salary equivalent to the average monthly salary in their simulated occupation. Then they work through the reality experience of opening a checking and savings account; making consumer decisions; paying bills; writing checks and balancing a checkbook. These activities are done as students spend their salaries for the necessities and luxuries they envision as part of their adult lifestyle; as well as pay taxes and save for the future.

The Real Money, Real World program has three primary goals.

1. To increase participants' awareness of how education level and corresponding career choice influence personal income and financial security.
   
2. To increase the students’ knowledge of money management tools used in daily spending for cost-of-living decisions.
3. To increase participants’ awareness of how income and lifestyle choices affect the amount of money available for discretionary spending.

The Real Money, Real World program is designed to increase participant awareness related to:

• How the type of job affects how much income can be earned.
• The level of education needed to get the job desired.
• The amount of money deducted from paychecks for taxes, other withholdings, health insurance, and retirement.
• How financial institutions help with personal money management.
• What it costs to maintain a household.
• What it costs to care for a child.
• How every spending decision affects other spending opportunities.

Because of Real Money, Real World, youth will place more importance on and plan for changes related to:

• Doing well in school.
• Getting more education or training after high school.
• Waiting until financially ready before having children.
• Having a plan for spending that includes both needs and wants.
• Learning how to make financial decisions that adjust spending to match income.
• Saving money regularly.