JA Finance Park Advanced to Help Teens Gain Greater Understanding of Managing Finances

Today, Junior Achievement USA, with the support of KPMG and the KPMG Foundation, is announcing the launch of JA Finance Park Advanced®. The program is designed to help High School students better understand how to manage money by letting them select simulated life-scenarios and challenging them to successfully manage their finances. The JA Finance Park model is demonstrated to raise financial literacy and capability of students who have been through the program.

"At Junior Achievement, we think of financial literacy as ‘the other literacy,’" said Jack E. Kosakowski, President and CEO of Junior Achievement USA. "Like the need to read, we also need to understand how to manage money. We are faced with financial decisions every day, yet very few of us are exposed to financial literacy programs in school. JA Finance Park Advanced will help countless young people have more successful futures because they will have increased financial literacy and capability. We greatly appreciate KPMG’s and KPMG U.S. Foundation support of this important effort."

“Both Junior Achievement and KPMG are committed to lifelong learning and investing in skills such as entrepreneurship and financial literacy to empower future generations of leaders,” said KPMG U.S. Deputy Chair and COO Laura Newinski. “We are proud to collaborate with JA to help prepare and inspire young people to succeed.”

JA Finance Park Advanced is Junior Achievement’s capstone curriculum for personal financial planning and career exploration. This teacher-led classroom curriculum culminates with a visit to JA Finance Park, a realistic onsite or mobile facility, or virtually in the classroom, where students engage with volunteers and put into practice what they’ve learned by developing a personal budget. A new advanced curriculum and simulation gives high school students a more personal focus. Students select their career and define their future lifestyle and financial goals. The advanced simulation allows students to see the long-term impact of their education, savings, and credit decisions.

For more information about Junior Achievement and programs like JA Finance Park Advanced, visit www.JA.org.