JHS selected for personal finance course

Oct. 14--Jacksonville High School is one of the 500 high schools nationwide to receive funding for a personal finances program through author Dave Ramsey.

Darin Peterson, a consumer education teacher at Jacksonville High, has applied through the program for the last two years. The Jackson Charitable Foundation provided $1 million for schools to be able to offer the Ramsey Education's Foundations in Personal Finance curriculum for the year.

Peterson said he likes the curriculum's approach, which emphasizes debt-free personal finance while also teaching basic skills required for consumer education.

"The draw for me was showing them some ways to live debt-free -- and not make the mistakes I made," he said with a laugh.

Personal-finance author Ramsey developed Ramsey Education to provide school curriculum that would help teach people financial literacy early in life. The curriculum has been taught at middle schools, high schools and universities across the country.

In addition to covering topics like building a budget, avoiding debt, insurance products, saving for buying a home and retirement, Danielle Robinson, executive director for the Jackson Charitable Foundation, said the curriculum covers issues the students can connect with as they are learning -- like getting through college debt-free.

"One thing that I love about this curriculum is it looks at students where they are," Robinson said.

The organization has been hearing from students who benefited from what they learned through the course, she said.

"That is just such a gift for a young person to graduate from school not saddled with debt," she added.

Robinson said those stories impressed her organization, which doubled its support from the 250 schools sponsored in 2018-19.

The nonprofit organization handles charitable giving for Jackson National Life Insurance Co. and supports financial education.

Peterson has had his course materials funded through the sponsorship for two years and said he plans to apply again next year. He first found out about the opportunity after contacting Ramsey Education to find out what kind of classroom materials were available

"So, really it was Ramsey Education that connected me with Jackson," Peterson said.

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