Teach a Child, Reach the Nation: Why Financial Literacy Matters

WASHINGTON, Oct. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Personal Statement by Eleanor Blayney,
Consumer Advocate for the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards (CFP
Board):

Walk into a meeting room filled with representatives from the White House,
Federal Reserve, FDIC, FTC, Treasury, state and municipal governments,
universities, financial service providers, and not-for-profit associations,
and the last thing you might expect is consensus. But this year, the common
conviction was strong at the Second Annual Financial Literacy Leadership
Conference held on October 5th and 6th in Washington DC. The primary reason
for our recent economic distress was not greed, but widespread ignorance about
personal finance.

As a nation, we are financially illiterate. We don't know how to budget, how
to save, how to spend, how to manage risk. According to an "America Saves"
survey, 31 percent of Americans over 55 believe that winning the lottery is a
good strategy for building wealth.

Agreement on the solution was as strong as agreement on the problem.
Financial management should be a standard offering in our schools and
colleges. According to Ted Daniels, CFP® and President and CEO of the Society
for Financial Education and Professional Development, at present there are
only seven states that require such courses be taught in their schools.
Daniels, like many others attending the conference, is in favour of a federal
mandate that would implement such programs nationwide. As another conference
participant commented, one of the best ways to reach adults who are struggling
with financial issues is to teach their children. The concepts, exercises,
and examples discussed in the classroom are often brought home by kids to be
discussed at the dinner table.

Conference participants also believed that consumers need to be protected as
well as educated. The call for oversight of the credit reporting agencies
drew a strong and approving response from the conference participants. Now
unregulated, these four, for-profit agencies have enormous power over the
financial fate of consumers. A person's FICO score, often based on erroneous
or unchecked information, determines his or her ability not just to get a loan
or a credit card, but also an insurance policy, a lease, even a job.

There was one problem, however, that left both the conference speakers and
attendees searching for answers. How to help those for whom education and
regulation may come too late? A woman from Virginia, who teaches financial
education in her community, told the story of one of her students whose
parents lost their home, and as a result of the black mark of foreclosure on
their records, now cannot even find a place to rent. Her student was calling
her weekly, worried about her family and unable to concentrate on her
schoolwork.. The banker's voice broke as she asked the room for advice.

The few suggestions came slowly and singly. Two women from federal agencies
stood up, offering their websites, phone numbers and willingness to listen. I
perceived in their responses the kernel of a solution: community, caring and
communication must precede as well as follow our attempts to develop
curriculum and legislation. A human hand comes first.

Eleanor K. H. Blayney, CFP®
Consumer Advocate for CFP Board

About Eleanor Blayney, Consumer Advocate CFP Board:
Eleanor K. H. Blayney, CFP® is the Consumer Advocate for the Certified
Financial Planner Board of Standards (CFP Board), the credentialing authority
for over 60,000 CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER(TM) professionals. CFP Board works
on behalf of the public by upholding the highest standards for personal
financial planners. With an increasing number of people calling themselves
financial planners, as CFP Board's Consumer Advocate, Eleanor provides much
needed guidance on what to look for in a financial planner and encourages
consumers to seek out professionals who practice according to a fiduciary
standard. Eleanor also helps consumers to take control of their personal
finances and stresses the importance and benefits of having a formal financial
plan. As a seasoned practitioner herself, Eleanor understands that consumers
need strategies for addressing the rapidly-changing financial realities and
alerts them to the "red flags" that may be undermining their financial
security. Eleanor has more than 20 years of experience in the financial
planning profession and is recognized for helping to develop the practice
standards for CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER(TM) professionals.

About CFP Board: The mission of Certified Financial Planner Board of
Standards, Inc. is to benefit the public by granting the CFP® certification
and upholding it as the recognized standard of excellence for personal
financial planning. CFP Board currently has more than 58,000 CFP® certificants
in the United States. For more about CFP Board, visit www.CFP.net.

SOURCE CFP Board

Stacy Dimakakos, Media Relations, Grayling for CFP Board, +1-646-284-9417,
stacy.dimakakos@us.grayling.com