Banking...at school...really!

I recently attended a professional development conference in Boston, MA and attended a session about how a high school business educator worked with a local bank and opened a small branch office of the bank right in the high school. Student employees worked as tellers in the bank that was open a couple of hours each day and was also staffed by a bank employee. These same students who staffed the bank also were enrolled in a course in financial education at the school, an elective course and one which interested students also had to interview with the teacher and a bank employee to determine suitability for working in the school-based bank. What a cool concept!

As I did some additional research on the subject upon returning home, I found that school-based banks staffed by student employees is a growing trend across the country. In just a limited search I did online, I found at least six other school-based banks being operated in local high schools in virtually every corner of our nation. One key factor, however, was that these banks were operated often by local banks or credit unions rather than big-name banks we commonly see on every street in town. After hearing the presentation in Boston and doing my own research on this trend, it got me thinking, "Why don't more schools engage in such a joint venture?" Everything I have heard and read presents favorable results, especially for personal finance education!

As I always do, I am curious if any of my blog followers either have a school-based bank in their school or are familiar with a school in their area that operates a school-based bank. If so, what is the general consensus among students, staff, and parents?

I think school-based banks have great potential for providing a real-world experience for learning about personal finance education. Yes, operating such a bank takes effort from the sponsoring teacher, the school and school district, and the bank choosing to enter into such a venture. However, participating students learn a variety of personal finance and business education topics during their experience and even the general student body has the opportunity to learn basic financial education just by having an account at the bank, interacting with the bank employees, and experiencing the bank's operation on school grounds.

This is a real-world learning experience I am all in favor of--as business educators, forging such relationships with local banks and bringing that relationship to school can provide tangible benefits for many. I encourage and even challenge you to look into this possibility in your local district. Approach your school board member(s) and put together some tangible benefits to discuss at a board meeting. Meet with your local bank or credit union and see if they would be interested in working with the school district to operate a school-based bank. Above all, don't give up--if rejected once, revise your strategy and keep the idea fresh in everyone's mind. Personal finance education is something we must actively involve ourselves in order to provide the best financial preparation of our students.

Share with me your thoughts and let me know if this is something you have worked with before. I know I am going to come up with a plan to discuss with my local school district over the summer! Financial education is what we make of it--if we can make learning fun and show its real-world benefits, maybe more of our students will leave high school for college and/or careers more prepared to make the challenging financial decisions facing them in the future!

Related Article - "Bank branches in high schools a good financial lesson" (Link: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2010/03/09/bank-branches-in-high-schools-a-good-financial-lesson/)