A first step in educating our youth is educating our teachers. California Jump$tart, working with the California Council on Economic Education and the California Society of CPAs, offers Financial Smarts for Teachers, an introductory course for teachers and education students in pre-service training. Hundreds of teachers/students have taken these courses across California in the last few years. In follow-up surveys:
- 95% of respondents said they were taking steps to reduce their debt.
- 85% of respondents have admitted to changing their habits considering credit use.
- 95% of respondents have re-evaluated their household spending.
- 70% of respondents have begun to "Pay Yourself First" by automatically saving part of their income.
- 75% of respondents have incorporated financial concepts from the workshop into their classroom.
- 69% or respondents are using a portion of the Citi materials in their classroom.