Junior Achievement and The Allstate Foundation Launch Lessons to Teach Teens about Healthy Financial Relationships

Today, Junior Achievement USA (JA) and The Allstate Foundation announced the rollout of new lessons focused on healthy financial relationships for teens with an update and expansion of the JA Personal Finance^® program.

Designed for high school students, JA Personal Finance allows teens to experience the interrelationship between today’s financial decisions and future financial success. With The Allstate Foundation’s support, the original eight sessions of the program have been refreshed with content promoting healthy financial relationships.

“There have been many studies that show that money and finances are among the top sources of stress in relationships,” said Jack E. Kosakowski, President and CEO of Junior Achievement USA. “With the support of The Allstate Foundation, the JA Personal Finance program has been updated to show that money decisions aren’t only personal, but interpersonal. The intent is to provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to promote healthy financial relationships in their lives.”

In addition to updating the program’s eight original sessions, three additional new self-guided learning lessons focusing on credit, debt management, and net worth have been added. These lessons will allow high school students to explore how their financial decisions can affect others and will provide guidance on healthy ways to manage shared financial decisions and conflict with a partner.

“Financial abuse occurs in nearly all domestic violence cases and it’s often one of the main reasons why victims stay with or return to their abusive partners,” said Francie Schnipke Richards, vice president of social responsibility and The Allstate Foundation. “Our fifteen-year commitment to disrupting the cycle of violence has taught us that relationship violence can start at a young age. We’re proud to team up with Junior Achievement USA to educate young people about healthy financial relationships and help prevent abusive relationships before they start.”

About Junior Achievement USA® (JA)

Junior Achievement is the world's largest organization dedicated to giving young people the knowledge and skills they need to own their economic success, plan for their future, and make smart academic and economic choices. JA programs are delivered by corporate and community volunteers, and provide relevant, hands-on experiences that give students from kindergarten through high school knowledge and skills in financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship. Today, JA reaches more than 3 million students per year in 105 markets across the United States, with an additional 5.2 million students served by operations in 100 other countries worldwide. Junior Achievement USA is a member of JA Worldwide. Visit www.ja.org for more information.

About The Allstate Foundation

The Allstate Foundation accelerates positive change by empowering and educating the most vulnerable, inspiring today's visionaries and promoting community leadership. Since 2005, The Allstate Foundation has invested more than $70 million to help empower more than 2 million domestic violence survivors with education and tools to achieve financial independence and build a life free from abuse.

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