“Understanding basic financial principles helps people make smart decisions with their money,” said UW President Laurie Nichols in a recent press release. “The Ramsey curriculum teaches these important principles to help students achieve their post-high school aspirations, and the university is delighted to make it available to our Wyoming high schools. Our dream is for every Wyoming high school graduate to pursue a postsecondary credential or degree.”
The University of Wyoming has always been a financially cautious institution for their students offering one of the lowest in-state tuitions in the nation for all four year universities. Now they are working with the Ramsey Organization to sponsor the “Foundation in Personal Finance” so that all high school students in Wyoming may take a finance course free of charge and make educated financial decisions of their own. The Ramsey Organization has influenced curriculums across the country and recently approached UW and asked them to be a part of this movement through a sponsorship. With this collaboration, more than half of the educators in Wyoming are using the curriculum and meeting state education standards.
“This cooperative effort will empower teachers to build financial confidence and inspire hope in students,” said Jim King, senior vice president of Ramsey Education. “It was clear to us right away that the University of Wyoming considers it a privilege to support and strengthen financial literacy in the state. We think this unprecedented initiative will truly make an impact.”
The Dave Ramsey Show has been airing since 1992 on more than 600 radio stations and podcasts giving trustworthy financial advice to all of it’s listeners concerning insurance, debt, mortgage payments and much more. Once UW signed with the Ramsey Organization, Kyle Moore, the UW Associate Provost for Enrollment, was a guest speaker on October 19 for about ten minutes. Moore spoke about the universities low tuition, low student debt and high value of the curriculum offered.
“Wyoming students have an amazing opportunity to access affordable higher education because of the support of citizens and our elected officials,” said UW Institutional Communications Director Chad R. Baldwin. “Wyoming education officials have talked for years about the importance of providing financial literacy training to students, and this curriculum is an excellent vehicle to do so. We pursued an agreement with the Ramsey organization to fill a need for a financial literacy curriculum in Wyoming high schools, helping fulfill the university’s service mission; to create an additional UW connection for high school students and educators; and to gain exposure for the university with Ramsey’s national audience.”
This being the first year that the UW and Ramsey collaboration has taken affect, results will show in the next couple of years on how students are retaining the free financial education. The University of Wyoming will still offer a low in-state tuition and challenge other universities to follow their lead in educating teenagers about personal finances to build a better future.
