CINCINNATI (March 23, 2023) — It's unfortunate but true that many Americans with money woes learned about personal finance from the school of hard knocks.

Unite for Teen Financial Literacy, a joint project of United Way of Greater Cincinnati and Junior Achievement, is changing that. It puts volunteers in Cincinnati Public Schools seventh-grade classrooms where they provide students with information needed to make wise financial decisions. The project aligns with United Way's mission of helping every family and individual in the region achieve economic well-being.

The eighth annual event, held March 7, brought 84 volunteers into 80 classrooms where all 1,900 seventh-graders learned financial basics, such as the importance of planning and sticking to a budget.

"It brings the real world to the classroom," said Casey Senay, a seventh-grade social studies teacher at Aiken High School. "Students hear about wages, savings and taxes all the time, but have never really sat down and had deep conversations about them."

Senay said she felt the most beneficial topics revolved around budgets, types of spending, taxes, and discussions about rent and other living expenses. "During one bell, a student asked about taxes and the whole room became involved in this topic, one that someone might assume seventh-graders would not care about.

"The volunteers did a great job," Senay said. They devoted 445 hours to the event.