St. Joseph’s Villa Students Learn Life Lessons In
Budgetmania! Game with Summit Federal Credit Union

April 8, 2008—Most of the teenage students who live at St. Joseph’s Villa have had little exposure to the concept of budgeting an income, let alone topics like savings accounts, interest or credit cards.

“The majority of Villa kids in our residential program come from low socio-economic backgrounds and multi-stressed families where they lack role models who would encourage them to set vocational goals, manage money and think about their futures,” said Campus School Principal Shelly Kordish. “It’s just not something they’re exposed to very much. So we’re constantly looking for ways to teach them about different job possibilities and how to make responsible financial choices.”

That mission was accomplished on the morning of Friday, April 4, as more than a dozen Villa students participated in an interactive game called BudgetMania! conducted by staff from The Summit Federal Credit Union. The game took place inside the Villa’s Campus School, 3300 Dewey Avenue in Greece.

Each student was assigned an occupation(fire chief, brain surgeon, pastry chef or goat herder) and received a monthly income, accordingly, in play money. They then proceeded through various “stations”— manned by The Summit Federal Credit Union staff—that mimicked the real-life financial choices and challenges they might encounter in a typical month.

For example, a student “fire chief” needed to decide how to allocate his monthly income to purchase housing, transportation, food, clothing and entertainment, while still having enough money left over to cover unexpected pitfalls like a car repair. Players received positive and negative “consequences” based on their purchasing decisions, and had the option of establishing savings accounts, investing or applying for loans or credit cards.

“I learned that as an adult you need to think ahead and budget your money, rather than just live in the moment and spend what you want,” said Villa student Lakeisha. “I also learned that I don’t need to live in a mansion to be happy. This was a really fun game that got me thinking about my future.”

The St. Joseph’s Villa Campus School is a year-round, New York State certified and accredited school that provides academic, vocational and remedial services to approximately 100 teens in the agency’s residential program. Living temporarily on the agency’s main campus, teens receive treatment for emotional and behavioral health issues, often relating to past trauma in their lives.  Many of the students also have learning disabilities or delays.

“These are high-risk kids who need all the help we can give them to be able to function successfully in the community after they leave our care,” said Kordish. “We are thinking about their transition from the first day they come to us, and our highest priority is helping them make responsible choices and set positive and achievable goals for their futures.

Most of the students who participated in the April 4BudgetMania! game are involved in the Villa’s vocational training programs which include both a horticultural and a culinary arts program. Both of these programs enable students to learn job skills while enabling teens to apply science, math and other concepts they learn in the classroom. 

For these students, the BudgetMania! game provides a crucial experience.

“These are kids preparing for the working world who need to know how to manage a paycheck and live independently,” she said. “This is a fun way of engaging their interest and getting them to think about these things. Plus, because of Summit’s involvement, the kids felt connected to their community, which is so important.””
 

Summit Senior Vice President/COO Laurie Baker says the credit union saw an ideal opportunity to give Villa students a way to explore and develop some real-life skills that will impact their futures. In addition to running the game, each Summit volunteer took the time to introduce themselves to the students and talk a little bit about the work they do every day.

“These are kids who have not had the same advantages as many other students their age,” said Baker. “Speaking for all of the Summit employees who took part in this, we were so impressed by their attitudes, maturity and willingness to try something new. It was hard to say who had more fun, us or them, as we all grew from the experience.  Helping kids become stronger benefits our entire community and our credit union is very proud to play a part in that.”

St. Joseph’s Villa cares for kids in crisis. The private, nonprofit agency works with more than 2,000 kids a year through a network of community programs tailored to the needs of children and families. The Villa helps boys and girls, most between the ages of 10 and 17, overcome emotional and behavioral health challenges related to abuse and neglect, poverty, loss, violence, mental heath issues, substance abuse and other factors. A strength-based, family-centered approach is used to help kids overcome challenges, return successfully to their families and schools and build positive lives in the community. Villa programs include residential, community based and chemical dependency services.

St. Joseph’s Villa
3300 Dewey Avenue
Rochester, NY 14616
585.865.1550
www.stjosephsvilla.org

The Summit Federal Credit Union, founded in 1941, is a not-for-profit, member-owned financial cooperative dedicated to improving the lives of our members.  The Summit provides a full range of financial products and services to over 53,000 active members with over $400 million in assets. The Summit is the largest credit union with a presence in both Rochester and Buffalo.

The Summit Federal Credit Union
Toll Free: 1.800.836.7328
Member Services and Information: 585.453.7030
www.summitfcu.org