Back to School
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis this week signed into law a bill regarding education in his state’s public schools.
No, that’s not the one I’m talking about. Another bill that did not gain as much attention as the one concerning gender identity and elementary school students will ultimately make more of a difference and have more of an impact on the citizens of the state.
Florida became the largest state to mandate a financial literacy course as a requirement for high school graduation. Perhaps it has not drawn much attention because it was uniformly believed to be a good idea—the legislation was unanimously passed by both the state House and Senate earlier this month.
It’s a half-credit course in personal finance, with the requirement to take effect beginning with ninth graders in the 2023-2024 school year.
Back in the old days at South Tama County High School, as a junior I took a course called “personal recordkeeping” which sounds like what this Florida law would require—instruction on understanding debt, how to balance a checkbook, the fundamentals of investing…in short, very basic money management.
They used to say young people learned this stuff at home…but the failure of so many to understand how quickly one can get into financial trouble, and how hard it may be to get out of it…suggests students might not only learn something, but could perhaps share that knowledge with their parents.
Florida becomes the 11th state to require students to take a standalone course like this. Another 20 or so include personal finance education somewhere in the curriculum. And it’s gaining traction, with no fewer than 54 personal finance education bills pending in 26 states.
Money is key to so much. With all the options out there, it seems more important than ever to make sure young adults start with a solid basic understanding of the topic.
