It’s another solid block in the educational construction plan for South East Cornerstone Public School Division, and it’s being delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner.
Thanks to Junior Achievement Saskatchewan, Grade 9 students at the Estevan Comprehensive School will be receiving some important financial training through the implementation of the Dollars With Sense curriculum.
Cornerstone curriculum co-ordinator Aaron Hiske, noted the program will continue to roll out through Grade 10, 11 and 12 in subsequent years.
The program gets students to learn about how to be smart consumers, teaches them the nuances of dealing with credit, interest and budget preparations.
The credit program receives the green light from the Ministry of Education.
“Having the ability to make responsible financial decisions is important for all Saskatchewan people,” said Estevan MLA Lori Carr who helped deliver the first lesson in Room 27 at ECS with school administrators and three Cornerstone trustees in attendance. The first class lecture was delivered by Carol Ward of JA and subsequent lessons and directions will be under the guidance of current ECS entrepreneurship educators such as Josh LeBlanc, Curtis Hack and Joyce Mack. Hack and Mack were also in attendance for the first lecture.
Carr said the program will assist the students throughout their lifetime.
Michael Merriman, Cornerstone’s superintendent for the southern part of the vast school division, introduced Ward and the course to the first class of about 24 students who were eager to pick up their financial workbooks and respond to a series of questions about various forms of credit and debt.
“It’s about making wise financial decisions, budgeting and managing your money,” Ward told the students. “The knowledge you gain will serve you well.”
JA, she told the Mercury, is a not-for-profit organization that focuses on such things as entrepreneurship programs in elementary, middle years and high schools.
“The greatest natural resource we have in this province are our students,” Ward added.
The program will be offered at first in all Cornerstone public schools that deliver high school programs.
“The course is about your relationship to money,” Ward told the students. “Money is just a tool. You must know yourself and what your values are before you decide what you will do and what you need money for. There will be spenders and savers among you and if you are a saver, for instance, then you need to ask yourself ‘why am I saving?’ You need to put thought into what you are saving for and learn about money, not only in school but out of school. If you are a consumer, you’ll need to learn more about credit ratings.”
ECS vice-principal Brian Wright said the course fits nicely into the current Grade 9 curriculum and the consumable materials being supplied, means there is very little cost being associated with the delivery of this new program. He said the program will be delivered to about 4,000 students over the next 10 years, starting with that day’s kick off.
“It certainly fits in well with the Cornerstone Tomorrow survey we took a couple of years ago that suggested we could put something like this into our education programming,” said Audrey Trombley who is chairwoman of the Cornerstone board of trustees who attended the first lecture along with Estevan trustee Pam Currie and Subdivision 1 trustee Carol Flynn.
Junior Achievement is celebrating 40 years of providing innovative programs and opportunities for students to value free enterprise, understand business and economics and develop entrepreneurial and leadership skills. Last year their programs reached over 21,000 Saskatchewan students.
