U.S. Mayors Declare: April 2014 Is DollarWise Month

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Mar 28, 2014, 11:59 ET

WASHINGTON, March 28, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Conference of Mayors' DollarWise Campaign is pleased to announce that this year's DollarWise Month will be held during the month of April. Cities across the United States will engage in various activities that promote this year's theme "DollarWise: Planning for the Future." DollarWise encourages mayors to speak with youth and young adults in their cities about the importance of using money wisely to prepare for a financially stable future.

Examples of cities launching financial education initiatives:

The Alexandria DollarWise Committee will partner with the Common Wealth One Credit Union to participate in the Reality program at Frances Hammond Middle School on Wednesday, April 9^th. Students will be provided mock families, occupations, and salaries and will be asked to purchase imaginary housing, transportation, food, and clothing. The students will do this with fake money and must stay within set budgets. The event will run from 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

The Baltimore Office of Economic Development will provide financial education sessions as part of its job-readiness training for youth who are candidates for its Hire One Youth summer job program. The training will take place between April 14^th–17^th.

In Charlotte, the Mayor's Youth Employment Program, Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools, and MeckEd will collaborate to present a Career Discovery event. On April 9, Charlotte will host 4,000 youth at its Park Expo for a one-day event. Youth will have the opportunity to interact with Mayor Patrick Cannon, local government officials, and business executives. Youth will also have access to financial literacy training.

Gary will launch its Spring Break Out Week April 21st-25th. During the week, youth grades K-8 will engage in financial literacy training through a partnership with First Midwest Bank and Junior Achievement. First Midwest Bank will provide youth with financial literacy comic books and coloring books for Gary's youngest participants, and will conduct Money Smart "Money Matters" and "Bank On It" workshops. Junior Achievement will also work with Gary to provide a financial literacy curriculum for all age groups.

Los Angeles will host four consecutive all-day events at library branches throughout the city. At these events, residents will gain free access to financial workshops, tax preparation services, credit counseling, student financial aid assistance, and public benefit screening & enrollment. These events will take place from 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. The April 5^th event will take place at the Central Branch Library, the April 12^th event will be held at the Van Nuys Branch Library, the April 19^th event will be at the Pio Pico Branch Library, and the April 26^th event will be held at the Exposition Park Branch Library.

"As individuals become more financially literate, they become better prepared to build stable families, to be productive members of the workforce, and to contribute to their communities," said U.S. Conference of Mayors CEO and Executive Director Tom Cochran. "I congratulate these mayors who are committed to helping citizens to realize such opportunities."

Get involved
DollarWise invites your city to highlight financial education efforts during the month of April. For suggested activity themes as well as information on how to register, visit http://www.bedollarwise.org. If you or your staff have any further questions about DollarWise Month or the DollarWise Campaign, please contact Program Manager James Kirby by email at: [email protected] or by phone at: (202) 861-6759.

About The United States Conference of Mayors
The U.S. Conference of Mayors is the official nonpartisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more. There are nearly 1,400 such cities in the country today, and each city is represented in the Conference by its chief elected official, the mayor. Like us on Facebook at facebook.com/usmayors, or follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/usmayors.

About the DollarWise Campaign

The DollarWise Campaign is the official financial literacy and education outreach effort of The United States Conference of Mayors and its Council on Metro Economies and the New American City. Since 2004, hundreds of cities have participated in DollarWise Campaign initiatives and programs. DollarWise encourages mayors and city staff to address the growing need for financial literacy in our nation's cities. To assist cities in their efforts, the DollarWise Campaign works to build partnerships with national organizations, including federal agencies, nonprofit groups, and corporations that offer technical support, curricula, and financial support. While DollarWise is an ongoing, year-round effort, events such as DollarWise Month help communities and the media focus their attention on financial literacy. The campaign also sponsors the DollarWise Innovation Grants Program and the Summer Youth Campaign Grants program, which offers cities the opportunity to gain funding to enhance and expand creative and innovative financial literacy efforts. The founding sponsor of the DollarWise Campaign is the Bank of America Charitable Foundation. For more information on the DollarWise Campaign visit us at http://www.bedollarwise.org, or contact James Kirby at [email protected].

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SOURCE The U.S. Conference of Mayors