Junior Achievement of Central Texas

The organization aims to give students the skills they need to plan for their future and achieve economic success.

In most cases, programming is free to the school and funded by donations and corporate sponsorships, he said.

JACT does not receive state or federal funding but instead relies on donations, fundraisers, grants and corporate sponsorships, Swincher said.

This year in Austin, JACT is introducing FinLit USA, an online high school–level curriculum designed to meet national and Texas Education Agency requirements for financial literacy. The curriculum begins with a knowledge assessment to determine what areas need improvement, and students then work on those areas.

Students can access the materials remotely or in the classroom, and adults can also sign up to take the course for about $7, he said.

New this year, JACT received a $1.1 million grant from the national consulting firm Accenture to design JA Career Success, a work-readiness program and core curriculum JACT will implement in schools nationwide in the fall.

"We're launching it in probably 20 classrooms [in Austin], and it's designed at helping students realize earlier on what they need to do in school [and] think about what career they might want and what it's going to take to get there," Swincher said. "We're trying to connect learning to earning with a more direct line," he said.

Making connections

Seeing students grasp how financial concepts are used in daily life is inspiring, according to Realtor Courtney Unangst and David Brodsky, chief financial officer of David Brodsky Properties of Keller Williams Realty, who both volunteered in May with a second-grade class at Southwest Austin's Patton Elementary School.

Unangst and Brodsky led students in one of JACT's five-part lessons, which puts students in charge of a fictional town where they work together to choose a mayor, decide what new business would be best for their city, learn about taxes and participate in a donut-making assembly line.

Unangst said the activities not only teach students about basic economic principles but also how to work as a team. She said she decided to volunteer because she participated in JACT as a child in school.

"I always thought it was really cool," she said. "It's an opportunity [for students] to do something different during the school day."

Brodsky, who is also a former student of the JACT program, explained the children in the classes with whom he has volunteered have been enthusiastic and excited to have the opportunity to meet people who are part of the local business community. He said that volunteering in the classroom is rewarding for the teachers, students and volunteers.

He noted the organization is always in need of more volunteers.

"It's not only just the opportunity to give to the kids, which is why we do it, but it's like any time I've done a worthwhile volunteer effort—the gift is really for you because you get a chance to experience something that's really neat," he said. "The kids are sweet and they're interested. It's encouraging to watch them knowing they want to learn and grow."

History

Junior Achievement was established in 1919 as an after-school program and expanded to include classroom presentations in 1975. Today, the organization has more than 400 classroom volunteers and serves more than 10,000 students in 21 counties.

Dave Swincher, president of Junior Achievement of Central Texas, said that especially in today's economy, it is important to help children learn early on how to be financially successful.

"I remember as a kid the financial end of things was always a challenge. I was the first one out of 11 [children] to go to college," he said. "You can trace so many problems back to 'I've got financial issues,' and so many of them are self-inflicted, and they really don't need to be."

Source: Junior Achievement of Central Texas

Junior Achievement of Central Texas, Patton Elementary School campus, 6001 West Creek Drive, Unit G, 512-499-8025, www.jacentex.org