Tina Macy, Westfield VIP’s coordinator (WNG file photo)
WESTFIELD—The Greater Westfield Credit for Life Fair is taking place Thursday at Westfield State University (WSU). The fair, which is the third annual in Westfield, was created to prepare high school students, mostly seniors, for the financial realities of adult life. The event takes place at the Woodward Center at WSU on March 16, from 8:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.
“The credit for life fair is an interactive financial literacy fair, mainly for seniors but juniors are also in attendance,” Tina Macy, volunteer coordinator for Westfield Schools, said. “It’s set up like a large job fair.”
Each student that shows up will choose a career, with about 100 options at their disposal. Then, with each job there will be a certain salary of imaginary money that the students are provided. These salaries were researched by Macy and her team, and are indicative of the average salaries of 25-year-olds in the Pioneer Valley in their given field. In addition to this salary, the students are also given $2,100 in fictitious savings that they can utilize on top of their salaries.
The fair will have 15 total booths, with each booth representing a part of an adult’s financial responsibility at age 25. Topics include housing, utilities, insurance, savings, retirement, credit and transportation. The students must navigate through each of these booths, with the first stop being the credit booth. While there, students will be given a random credit score and must wear a lanyard displaying it, and this credit score will impact costs of the many financial responsibilities they are given.
In addition, the fair will feature the “Reality Check” for students, which is a roulette-style wheel with a number of instances that may provide or cost the student money. The students spin the wheel and they could end up with a flat tire that they need to repair—which would cost money—or they could win the lottery—which would help them gain more money.
It is expected that more than 600 students will attend from a combination of the Westfield high schools and Southwick-Tolland Regional School.
