ST. GEORGE — Nationally, statistics show children living in the United States are lacking in financial literacy and, therefore, not saving for their futures.

In Utah, high school students fare better than average due to legislation introduced in 2003. SB 154 made graduation requirements “include instruction that stresses general financial literacy.” In June 2004, the Utah State Board of Education approved the General Financial Literacy Core Curriculum and Utah became the first state to require a mandated course for all students.

The personal finance requirement went into effect for the graduating class of 2008. In 2012, Utah HB 156 added “a general financial literacy test-out option.”

The National Financial Educators Council recently released findings from research that tested students aged 15-18 on financial literacy. Approximately 52% of those tested from high schools nationwide failed.

Of the 510 students surveyed in Utah, the average score was 65% — a “C” on a typical high school assignment — earning the state an “A” rating from the council’s research team.

Sara Workman, a professor of personal finance at Southern Utah University, told St. George News how she updates and maintains the curriculum for concurrent enrollment students who jointly attend the university and high school.

“I believe the reason Utah students are ahead of the curve in financial literacy, compared to the national average, is that Utah’s public education system has put such an emphasis on that need in recent years,” Workman said. “This last summer, I went through the curriculum requirements set by the Utah Board of Education to ensure our concurrent enrollment program met all the standards, and I was highly impressed with how thorough they were.”

The problem nationally, in her opinion, is the lack of public school education for previous generations.

“I was only taught to balance a checkbook in high school and that skill is not especially helpful anymore with today’s technology,” she said.

“Based on my own experience, the parents of current high school students possibly didn’t have a particularly in-depth education in personal finance unless they acquired it through their own parents, in college or as part of their career field,” Workman added. “Furthermore, if their parents didn’t discuss money in the home, they may be unsure how to start that conversation with their own kids.”

In the age of technology, many of today’s youth are switching to online resources for help, which may not always be from a credible source. Workman said SUU offers many resources for parents seeking to expand their knowledge on paying taxes, scholarship aid and noncredit community courses.

“I tell my students at the beginning of each semester that a class in personal finance has the potential to do more to directly improve their future than any other single course they may take while pursuing their degrees,” Workman stated. “I stand by that statement and I highly encourage anyone who has an interest in learning more about personal finance to seek out reliable sources on the topic and dive in.”

One tool for parents who want to take an active role in their children’s financial education is an app named BusyKid, according to founder Gregg Murset. In town for his teen’s recent pickleball tournament, Murset stopped by St. George News to demonstrate how the app helps both parents and children with saving and investing decisions.

“If you think about it, the nature of money has changed over time,” he said. “It used to be dollars and cents stuck in your pocket, writing checks — none of that exists anymore.”

Using the app, parents can pay their children for chores, good grades, allowance or even send a monetary “gift for candy” on a bad day, Murset said. The child then has four options: save, spend or invest the money, or donate it to charity. Or, they can set a percentage of the payment received to be distributed between the four options.

Parents can adjust those percentages, then allow more freedom as their child ages, Murset said. Funds distributed to the saving and spending options would be linked to the child’s existing bank accounts.

Under the invest option on the BusyKid app, children can invest in fractional shares on the stock market, like many popular apps. Unlike those apps, parents can supervise, monitor and help their children with stock-buying decisions from their own devices.

Using the donate feature, children who love to share their candy can choose their favorite charity to donate a portion of their earnings to, such as an animal shelter, food bank or children’s justice center.

“What we’ve set up is the ability for parents to let their kid earn some money, by chores or bonuses,” Murset said. “And then manage the money by saving and investing, spending or donating.”

Murset surmised that many Americans fear teaching their children about financial literacy because many are in debt themselves.

“I think that is another reason to get into it, to say, ‘Listen, I want you to be better at this than I was,’” he said. “It takes a little bit of humility to do that, but they are your kids — you should be able to do that.”

Parents can also help their children by being transparent, Murset noted. Instead of complaining about gas prices, parents should discuss them along with tires, oil changes, insurance, registration and other related maintenance costs so children aren’t blindsided when they purchase a vehicle of their own.

“Next time you get the power bill, show it to them,” he said. “Where I am from, in neighboring Arizona, it is $600 in the summer and it kind of blows their mind. But those are little things parents can do to help them understand money. They can also empathize with what their parents do to make a household work — I think it helps everybody.”

Southern Utah University does not endorse the BusyKid app. Sara Workman responded to questions from St. George News pertaining to financial literacy among Utah high school students only.

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