The National Financial Capability Challenge is an awards program designed to increase the financial knowledge and capability of high school aged youth across the United States so they can take control over their financial futures. It challenges high school teachers and other educators to teach the basics of personal finance to their students, and rewards students, educators, schools, and states for their participation and their success. Educators and top-scoring students will receive award certificates, and schools and states with the highest participation rates will earn special distinction.

How does the challenge work?

This is a free program.

Registration: Educators are encouraged to go to challenge.treas.gov to sign up.Educator Toolkit: Educators will have access to a free Educator Toolkit that includes ready-to-use lesson plans (in PDF format) that cover all the core concepts students need to learn to take the Challenge. Educators are encouraged to use whichever modules they like, use other existing resources, or create their own innovative approaches to teaching these concepts in an effort to help students increase their financial capability.Best Practices: Throughout the Challenge period and beyond, we encourage educators to share ideas and suggestions about effective ways that they have found to help increase their students' financial capability.Challenge Exam: The Challenge online exam, which is designed to illustrate the relevance of financial topics to students, as well as to assess their learning, will be offered from March 12 - April 13, 2012. Over 84,000 students participated in the spring of 2011. It took the average student less than 30 minutes to complete.Awards Program: The top two scorers at each school, plus all students scoring in the top 20%, will receive National Financial Capability Challenge Award Certificates. All participating educators will receive an official certificate as well.