Juniors Learn Real-World Budgeting at Credit for Life Fair
Abby Chachus || STAFF WRITER
AHS hosted a credit for life fair on April 15th for all juniors in the field house. The Credit For Life Fair is a national organization that helps students budget for their lives. Students pick a job and through that job, they’re given a salary, and have to budget monthly.
The students talk to experts about how to budget and what to choose when it comes to the kind of car that they want, and how much their car payment is going to be. They also need to consider the kind of housing that they want and what insurance they will need with the car and home they end up purchasing and how expensive that will be.
“It gives students a perspective on all the expenses that their parents have to think about now,” said Principal Jimmy D’Andrea.
By simulating real-world financial decisions, the fair allows attending students to begin to understand the complexity of everyday expenses like housing, transportation, insurance, and food. This perspective is meant to create a sense of maturity and responsibility in students.
Juniors begin to step into the real world, facing new responsibilities and decisions about their futures. Whether considering college, or careers, they need to start considering the financial aspects of life. By participating in this fair, juniors start to understand the reality of finances.
“I learned that you shouldn’t spend all your money on things that you already have,” said junior Smit Patel. “Save your money… Help people that really need the money, or just save it for the things you need.”
Showing students the consequences of spending all their money on things that ultimately aren’t necessary is important. According to Officer Thomas Paolera, it is also important to show that illegal actions people take, like drunk driving, can not only affect their reputation but their financial life.
“[At one station,] I [had] drunk goggles and I put kids through field sobriety [tests to] show them that OUI lawyers can cost you anywhere from $3000 to $4,000. We also talked about tickets and the cost of those as well,” said Paolera.
“[We hope students] are going to be more aware of how to manage a budget,” said Michael McCarthy, the program organizer and Andover’s social studies program adviser. “They’re going to begin to choose jobs according to their passion as well as economic viability.”
McCarthy expressed believing in the importance of preparing students for life beyond high school by encouraging financial awareness and intentional career planning. “In the future, they’ll be better prepared to balance a budget,” he said.
“It’s important to know that money’s just not gonna come to you,” Patel said. “You gotta earn your money, you gotta work hard.”
