Sadly, however, many young people are not given the tools to develop towards their financial success, and as a state that has the highest average credit card debt in the country, Alaska needs to focus on building a better financial literacy foundation. Many kids are not being taught the fundamentals of managing their personal finances and the importance of it. Folks my age likely remember taking a personal finance class in high school, which focused on growing skills such as balancing a checkbook and understanding how to responsibly use credit cards. For budgeting reasons and others, these classes have largely been cut from current curriculums.

While the School of Hard Knocks may sound cool, there is no reason today’s young people should be put at a knowledge disadvantage that could set them back years financially. Reversing this troubling trend in financial literacy is at the heart of what Junior Achievement (JA) of Alaska does, and it’s why I have been honored to serve on the JA Board of Directors for twenty-two years. While some Gen Z’ers may never have seen a checkbook, the math skills and diligence needed to balance one are universally applicable.

JA’s mission is to help as many young Alaskans as we can with their financial literacy through daylong courses tailored to different ages, elementary through high school. We like to say we “flood the schools” with our JA in a Day program, in which our team of JA educators reaches every student in the school on that day. What started with three schools in 2009 has grown to serve nearly 12,000 students last year in twenty-eight school districts all across Alaska. Our goal is to serve 30,000 students by 2026.

In my day job, I’m the Chief Financial Officer for Credit Union 1 (CU1), and our leadership team shares my passion for improving financial literacy among young Alaskans. It’s the driving force behind why we added a new member benefit for 2024: free access to a family-focused financial app called Greenlight. Greenlight provides a savings and spending account for children and teens, with its own card that parents can manage to help ensure their children gain positive financial habits. The program’s features allow parents to award money for chores, grades, or behavior as well as put limits on where the card can be used and how much their kids can spend—all from their smartphone. It’s the perfect tool for parents to build a foundation of financial literacy in their children (and keep an eye on what their kids are buying).

CU1’s commitment to helping young Alaskans is a big reason why I’m proud to work there, and through working with partners in finance and education, we can make sure every kid in Alaska is prepared to build their own dream.