Quincy high schoolers learn budgeting basics from the pros

March 21-- Mar. 21--QUINCY -- Quincy high school seniors got a bitter dose of reality Thursday as they learned about budgeting and expense management at the 11th annual Credit for Life Fair.

About 200 Quincy High School and North Quincy High School students, all in business classes focused on topics such as personal finance and accounting, were given imaginary budgets based on the average income of a 25-year-old in a chosen career. They visited booths centered around 14 major life expenses, including housing, transportation and healthcare. Dozens of local banks, businesses and other organizations participated, including the South Shore YMCA, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Quirk Auto Dealers and Bank of Canton.

"I'm actually learning a bunch. The real world is a lot more expensive than I realized," said Mark McKenna, a senior at Quincy High School who said he wants to be a political scientist.

Lauren Pedretti, who works in community outreach and financial literacy for Quincy Credit Union, one of the fair's sponsors, said organizers focused on making the event as realistic as possible. They used the most recent numbers to determine salaries, prices for housing and cars, and set it up so students had to factor in things such as credit scores, unexpected emergencies and student loans, she said.

Pedretti said students sometimes realize there's no way they can balance their budgets with the car they bought, or they may have to switch from living alone to having roommates. The fair allowed them to rethink decisions and consult with finance professionals before they make similar judgements in real life.

"This is a forum to give them the opportunity to make mistakes," she said.

Keith Segalia, executive director of career vocational and technical education for Quincy Public Schools, said next year they plan to expand the program to an additional 200 students in the schools' career vocational and technical programs.

Mike Rothbern, a financial advisor at Baystate Financial, said he's been surprised with how much financial literacy current high schoolers have, saying plenty of the seniors understand things like mutual funds or own stock. But he said millennials face different challenges than their parents' generation, especially more student debt and less investment in retirement.

Rachel Higgins, a senior at Quincy High School, said she was surprised by how quickly expenses added up. In the simulation, she had a car accident she had to pay for, and she had to factor in larger-than-expected costs of business attire and dry-cleaning for a career in law. The fair made her realize she should start a savings account sooner rather than later, she said.

"It's good to know," she said. "There are a lot of different things in the mix."

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