2012 COHEAO Financial Literacy Awareness White Paper

A new publication from COHEAO, “Financial Literacy on Campus:  Raising Awareness, Creating and Developing Programs, and Improving Effectiveness,” is now available for members.  Click here to download a copy.

The paper highlights the growth and development of two financial literacy programs out of the student loan and student financing services offices at two COHEAO members, Duke University and the University of Illinois.  This project was spearheaded by Carl Perry, Senior Vice President with Progressive Financial Services, Inc. and the Financial Literacy Task Force Chair, who provides the introduction to the paper which emphasizes the importance of the issue and the potential return on investment (ROI) for all stakeholders in the higher education community.  Irene Jasper, Director of Student Lending at Duke University chronicles the creation of the “PersonalFinance@Duke” program and Andrea Pellegrini, Assistant Director of University of Illinois’ Student Money Management Center (SMMC), reviews how the University Student Financial Services & Cashier Operations (USFSCO) office at the University of Illinois targets its limited resources to provide these services to the students who may need them most.  Kris Alban of iGrad, also a member of the COHEAO Financial Literacy Task Force, highlights three key variables for making financial education programs effective, while COHEAO’s Wes Huffman examines the federal role on this important issue.

In addition to reviewing the two campus programs and offering insights on improving financial education on your campus, the COHEAO Financial Literacy Awareness White Paper provides a listing of numerous websites and books to assist you in the development of financial literacy programs at your campus or organization.