SAFE Credit Union fulfills a great need by offering financial education throughout the Greater Sacramento community. The team of Financial Wellness Manager Hector Madueno and certified financial educators Miriam Dougherty and Savannah Brown provides free services including webinars and workplace financial wellness presentations, as well as internship opportunities, life skills learning paths, and their Budget Cents program within surrounding school districts.
“Our high-school branch program hosts branches at three high schools, staffed by students who complete a SAFE internship program to learn banking and job skills,” Brown says. “They also provide peerto-peer financial tips to fellow students as they help them establish savings and checking accounts.”
Budget Cents, a budgeting simulation for students ages 13-17, introduces real-life financial decisions they’ll make as adults. In this simulation, they are provided a financial profile that includes a family size, a career and a credit score. Students visit different stations and make purchases for everyday needs. This allows them a safe place for mistakes and provides insights on adult responsibilities.
“As more people rely on digital resources, SAFE ensures that our educational content is relevant, useful and easily accessible.” — MIRIAM DOUGHERTY Certified Financial Educator
“As the national conversation turns to requiring financial education in schools, SAFE is already providing services to help students learn financial topics, determine wants versus needs and prepare for unexpected expenses,” Madueno says. “We are equipping future generations with the knowledge they need to cultivate great, lifelong financial habits.”
SAFE Credit Union offers members free access to the Zogo financial education app, which gamifies learning with real-life rewards, and the SAFE Financial Education department has planned many strategies, programs and partnerships for the future.
“As more people rely on digital resources, SAFE ensures that our educational content is relevant, useful and easily accessible,” Dougherty says. “We use virtual and in-person instruction, simulations and a customized learning series to meet our members where they are on their financial journeys. Most importantly, this content will remain free to our members and those in the community who wish to learn more.”
