HARTFORD, Conn.–A bill that would require financial literacy education is moving through the Connecticut General Assembly with bipartisan support.
The Education Committee introduced a bill that would make half a credit of personal financial management and financial literacy a high school graduation requirement in Connecticut, starting with classes graduating in 2027. It consequently decreases the credits available from electives from three to 2.5.
According to the Day.com, most of the dozens of people who submitted testimony wrote in support, though others voiced concern about further limiting student choice and feel this should be a matter of local control.
Among those who submitted testimony in support of the bill was Brian Orenstein, president and CEO of Charter Oak FCU, who stated in testimony that “as we all work to break the grip of the COVID pandemic, we have faced two grim financial realities: There has never been a more important time for people to possess basic financial literacy, and states that don’t require such coursework turn a blind eye to lingering social inequities and abide the widening rich-poor gap.”
Writing in support of the bill, one Ledyard High School student said she has seen people “completely lost on how to handle themselves when it comes to personal finance,” according to the Day.com.
‘Impactful’ for Students
The publication noted that at Lewis S. Mills High School in Burlington, the Class of 2023 is the first for which students have to take a semester course in financial literacy as a graduation requirement. Business teacher Barbara Angelicola-Manzolli, who applied for a grant to launch the elective in 2007 and pushed for it to be a requirement, said in her written testimony she wants to see this happen statewide, the Day.com reported.
“Throughout the years, I have heard from countless students about how impactful this class was in their lives,” she wrote. “The confidence they had starting out on solid financial footing made them want to reach out to me and thank me.”
The bill passed out of committee March 10 on a bipartisan 39-2 vote, and Education Committee Co-Chair Rep. Jeff Currey (D-East Hartford) said he is “confident that we are going to see this come up for a vote in the full House and Senate. We’re still ironing out the details to what it looks like.”
He said committee leadership would like to allow financial literacy to fall under the graduation requirement of nine credits in the humanities.
Totaling the Cost
According to the report, the state’s Office of Fiscal Analysis noted the bill results “in a potential cost to local and regional school districts” starting next fiscal year.
“Costs to districts will depend on whether they must hire additional staff to teach the course, and if any, how many staff they must hire,” the fiscal note states. “Average salary plus fringe costs for a full-time teacher is approximately $100,000.”
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