Foxborough High Seniors Get Reality Check at Credit for Life Fair

The following was submitted by Foxborough Assistant Superintendent Amy Berdos as part of the school committee's Teacher and Learning Highlight Series.

Seniors from Foxborough High School most likely will not forget how expensive life can be and how important it is to make good decisions and plan for your future after engaging in The Credit for Life Fair. Foxborough High School’s Ms. Ellen Pillsbury, the organizer of the event, was joined by FHS seniors Jason Galanti, Emily Nutting and Student School Committee representatives Melissa Lynch and Mical Henriquez as the Teaching and Learning Highlight at the most recent School Committee meeting.

The Credit for Life Fair is a financial literacy program aimed at teaching students the importance of understanding a budget, how decisions can influence it and the importance of planning ahead. Ms. Pillsbury thanked our friends at Patriot Place for their help with donating the venue for the event which took place at Showcase Live. The fair was a great success thanks to many generous sponsors.

Ms. Pillsbury explained how the financial literacy exercise impacted approximately 220 students that were led through the activities by about eighty generous volunteers. The volunteers consisted of true financial advisors, bankers and community members. She went on to explain how students first chose a profession and then were assigned an income. Taking on the role of a young adult in their early twenties, they assumed a career role and made decisions based on that role. Each was assigned a salary where they also received a credit score and were armed with a mock checking and savings account to balance. Some even had a student loan to contend with depending on the career they had selected! “It was a really good learning experience because you learn things you wouldn’t learn until you are out of college,” said Mical.

While visiting various booths students made financial decisions on purchasing everything from food, clothing and housing to deciding on insurance plans and car loans. Jason and Emily agreed that the Personal Finance elective course they took at FHS was very helpful in their success of the event. Students were asked to make decisions on things such as whether to purchase or lease a car, decide on whether to have a roommate and choose what they would save for retirement. One booth that students found to be very important was manned by a credit counselor. They visited with the credit counselor in order to have their budget checked and see if they were living within their means. “It was a real reality check!” all the students agreed.

Foxborough High School seniors have participated in the event for the past nine years along with neighboring communities, but this was the first year to host the event on our own explained Ms. Pillsbury. This was all possible due to the financial contributions from the Foxboro Rotary Club, JED Insurance, and a Partners in Patriotism grant. The Fair was great learning experience for our students thanks to the many volunteers who assisted our seniors to better understand the impact of their future financial responsibilities.