Ryan Nelson: USAC should encourage integration of financial literacy into curriculum

The Undergraduate Students Association Council Financial Supports Commission hosted a financial literacy fair in Bruin Plaza on Tuesday, seeking to arm students with the real-world skills they need to navigate the world of bank loans, mortgages and retirement accounts they will encounter after college.

The fair offered a host of fantastic tools, but it was too easy to walk by on a busy day.

In order to truly increase financial literacy on campus and accomplish the major goals set out by the Financial Supports Commission, USAC as a whole should seek to move its message into a class setting, where students have an academic incentive to attend, rather than offering only voluntary sessions.

Moreover, the only way to make financial literacy a part of the UCLA curriculum is by enlisting administrative commitment and help.

There’s nothing inherently wrong with how the Financial Supports Commission went about obtaining and distributing the financial literacy resources available.I picked up every one of the documents and found some helpful material.

There were premade budget sheets, tables and charts detailing expected interest on student loans, names of resource centers on campus and more.

But the main flaw was the one thing that couldn’t be fixed: It was voluntary, and students had no real incentive to attend. It was easy enough to walk right through Bruin Plaza without casting a single glance at the fair.

Lauren Rogers, the USAC financial supports commissioner, said that 300 people attended the event.

And that is change for the better, because that’s 300 more students who are better educated on their finances. On the other hand, 300 students constitutes only about 0.7 percent of the undergraduate and graduate population on campus.

Rogers ran and was elected on a platform of increasing financial literacy, which demonstrates a real desire of students to see an expansion of these kind of programs on campus.

However, to achieve any kind of large-scale results, the Financial Supports Commission and the rest of USAC should continue to push the UCLA administration to sign onto the cause by facilitating the creation of actual required courses that deal with financial literacy.

As I’ve detailed before, there’s a significant cost associated with starting a new financial literacy class, close to about $100,000 for a lecturer and two teaching assistants.

But even if the Financial Supports Commission can’t accomplish that lofty goal this year, it can at least get the ball rolling and put it on the agenda for future student governments.

Financial knowledge and acumen is a necessary skill to survive in the world both inside and outside of college.

Rogers has even more events set up throughout the year. She has worked to bring alumni in to teach interactive workshops that cover topics like budgeting, student loans and paying rent.

It’s the exact kind of real-world experience UCLA can use to establish its own mandatory general education class in financial literacy.These alumni know exactly what students need to know as they depart school, since they’ve done it before themselves.

And while the names of the alumni have not yet been released, they are far from alone in advocating for a new class on campus.

Mark Buchman, a former banker who worked with the Reagan White House and teaches a UCLA Extension class, said he would teach a course on financial literacy for a reduced rate if it meant establishing such a class here.

There is steam behind the financial literacy movement at UCLA.The Financial Supports Commission’s projects are going a long way toward establishing a foundation for good financial literacy on campus, but it’s going to be up to the school to see it brought to full fruition.

The school would have to reshuffle money to make financial literacy a part of the curriculum. But it should make every effort to give the students both what they want and what they deserve.

E-mail Nelson at rnelson@media.ucla.edu. Send general comments to opinion@media.ucla.edu or tweets us @DBOpinion.

Published by Ryan Nelson

Ryan Nelson was the Opinion editor from 2015-16 and a member of the Bruin Editorial Board from 2013-16. He was an opinion columnist from 2012-14 and assistant opinion editor in 2015. Alongside other Bruin reporters, Nelson covered undocumented students for the Bridget O'Brien Scholarship Foundation. He also writes about labor issues, healthcare and the environment.

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1 Comment

  1. I agree that financial literacy is important, but it should replace an existing GE rather than be tacked on as another requirement. Graduating on time is hard enough as it is. :/
    As for Mr. Buchman teaching financial literacy.. I see some irony in a Reaganite filling that position.

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