MSU Credit $marts program for teachers, parents is available free on the Web

Teachers and parents looking for a way to teach how credit card charges work have a free resource on the Montana State University Extension Web-site.

The materials are part of the "Credit $marts: Helping You to Become Credit $avvy" program developed by Marsha Goetting, Montana State University Extension family economics specialist, with support from the First Interstate Bank Foundation and Montana Credit Unions for Community Development. Montana teachers used the materials last spring to expose students to the high cost of paying only the minimum on credit cards.

And most students need the help. National statistics says that about 32 percent of high school seniors use credit cards, but most don’t understand how interest charges can accumulate, said Goetting.

"The program would be great to use in a math class or a family living class," Goetting said. This year, the entire curriculum is all on the Web, and teachers (or parents) can print off the materials they wish to use. In addition, there are special slide credit calculators that show how much time it takes to pay off debt when minimum payments are made. The calculators are available to teachers and parents upon request.

"It is a complete package that teaches how to be credit smart," Goetting said. Last spring, materials were distributed to 900 high school students. Many adults could use a bit of a reminder on how credit card charges build up.

"It’s shocking for people to realize how much credit costs," she said. "If somebody has a current debt of $9,000 on their credit cards, and they pay a 3 percent minimum each month it takes 19 years to pay off the debt, which by that time totals $17,451 and includes $8,451 in interest charges."

The reasons individuals find themselves having problems with their credit cards, home mortgage, student loans or car payments are varied, but educating youth about some of the pitfalls of credit mismanagement is one way to help them get on the road to financial success.

The Credit $marts: Helping You to Become Credit $avvy program is designed help teachers, extension educators, and financial institutions educate youth about credit management.

After going through the program, one student wrote that they had learned, "By paying more than your minimum monthly payment, you can pay off debt much faster and pay much less interest."

Parents, teachers and teens who want to become more Credit $avvy can check out the Web site at: http://www.montana.edu/extensionecon/creditsmarts.html.

Two sound bites, one 9 seconds and one 25 seconds, to go with this story are available on the web. MSU Extension Family Economics Specialist Marsha Goetting talks about the use of credit cards by high school seniors (:09)

MSU Extension Family Economics Specialist Marsha Goetting talks about how most college students pay only the minimum balance on their credit cards (:25)

Contact: Marsha Goetting (406) 994-5695 or [email protected]

http://www.montana.edu/cpa/news/nwview.php?article=5035