WHS Asst. Principal Kevin Zdroykowski, VIPS Coordinator Tina Macy and WHS Principal Charles Jendrysik. (Photo by Amy Porter)
WESTFIELD – At the Credit for Life Fair held in Woodward Auditorium at Westfield State University Tuesday morning, high school students from four area schools were getting a dose of reality. After receiving a random credit score and choosing a career from a list, they had to secure housing, furniture, groceries, transportation and other essentials on their monthly budgets, before figuring out whether they had any money left over for fun in their imagined future 25-year old lives.
Meanwhile, volunteers from VIPS (Volunteers in Public Schools) and area banking institutions, who sponsor the event, were trying to tempt students to buy a new car or take a too expensive vacation.
VIPS coordinator Tina Macy said 90 volunteers were working with the 300 students from Westfield High School, Westfield Technical Academy, Southwick Regional High School and White Oak School.
“The more volunteers we have, the more robust the conversations,” Macy said.
Linda Saltus, a volunteer organizer with Credit for Life said the program was originally conceived by the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.) to bring financial literacy in a fun way to high school seniors, to give them a taste of what real life is like. This was the fifth year for Westfield, Saltus said. Area fairs are also held in Holyoke, Springfield, and Chicopee, serving 15 or more different high schools.
Macy said some of the students wearing colored credit score badges had taken a quiz to try to improve the scores they were initially given, after being rejected for loans for cars or credit cards. “Just because you have a good job, it doesn’t mean you have a good credit score, because you still can make bad choices,” Macy said.
Westfield Tech juniors Faith Young and Danielle Larrabbee were filling out job applications with the help of Credit for Life volunteer organizer Linda Saltus. (Photo by Amy Porter)
Students were also seeking part-time jobs to supplement their incomes. Saltus was helping them fill out applications, before they received one-on-one interviews. “Students need to look at the hours posted, fill out an application, and have a real interview. If their application is illegible, they don’t interview,” she said. During interviews she looked for good eye contact, and asked hard questions about experience, and what value the students would bring to her business. “I reject a fair number of applicants,” she said.
Faith Young, a junior at Westfield Tech studying Aviation Tech, was looking for a part-time job related to her career choice, also aviation maintenance. Not finding one, she was looking at a job in landscaping or in a hardware store.
Danielle Larrabee, a WTA junior in Collision Tech, had chosen Forensics as a career. She also said there were not many part-time jobs related to forensics that would work with her job hours. “I’m trying to do this so I can get a car,” Larrabee said.
WHS Social Studies Supervisor Jay Taylor, who was attending the fair for the first time, called it “impressive. I wish this was available when I was in high school. Any financial advice I received was from my parents – not always the most sound. It’s great that they have a preview of real life financial situations,” Taylor said.
At the Fun, Fun, Fun booth, Jaime Smith of Westfield Bank explained that at age 25, these students were not just going to go home after work. “The purpose of this booth is to have fun in their 25-year-old lives. They work all day from 8-5, and are not going to go home, but do things, such as go to the movies, or to a friend’s house to play video games, where they have to bring a dish, not empty hands. Maybe a favorite artist is in town, and they need money for a concert. Students have to choose a minimum of four activities,” Smith said. She said the volunteers at their booth tried to entice students to take a vacation and apply for a credit card at the Credit booth and charge it. “A credit card will not be given to everybody; they need a qualifying credit score,” Smith said.
At the Reality Check booth students were faced with unexpected expenses or windfalls. They had to spin a wheel on a number which corresponded to a real-life event, good or bad, such as picking up extra hours at work (+$150), a concert with friends (-$250), cell phone screen repair (-$125), car towed (-$100), or a win in Fantasy Baseball (+$250). All the students had to visit all the booths, like it or not.
A group from the White Oak School was discussing their financial situations.
“It’s pretty cool. I can still get stuff and have money left over,” said Zachary Nordstrom, who added that he was being cautious with his purchases.
Joseph Audette had chosen emergency medical technician (EMT) as a career. “I’m broke. My job is not paying enough,” he said.
White Oak math teacher Cindy Pliska said they had been coming to the fair for a few years, and she had been prepping her seniors on what to expect. “They were looking forward to coming here to improve over last year. The feedback is all positive. It’s a great learning opportunity, and helps them get an idea on how to really budget.” Pliska said, adding that her parents were bankers, so she had the training early.
WTA IT juniors Noah Lussier and Henry Johnson stretch their dollars in the future by sharing an apartment and car. (Photo by Amy Porter)
WTA Internet Technology juniors Noah Lussier and Henry Johnson were trying to furnish their apartment. They worked at the same IT firm and shared expenses, including a car. Noah’s monthly income was higher than Henry’s.
“It shows how I would actually do with money. I don’t save money now,” said Lussier, to which his friend agreed he is not good with money. “I’m an impulse buyer. In the future, it’s more urgent,” added Lussier.
“It’s great that we’re learning about it now, rather than later when it’s life or death, and we’re facing homelessness,” Johnson said.
All of the students had to visit the Credit Booth at the end of the fair, where Kim Consedine and Alex Boucher of Berkshire Bank were waiting to help them balance their purchases, using the check register they were given. “If they’re struggling, we send them up front to Credit Counseling,” said Consedine.
Boucher said the students were doing well, and scoring an average of 70% on the quizzes to increase their credit scores.
John Westcott V, a senior at Southwick Regional was confident. He said he started with a score of 618, took the quiz, and improved to 678. Westcott took a job as an Environmental Engineer, although he said his actual interest is in biology. He had also visited every booth except transportation, loans and part-time jobs.
“I think it’s helpful for most people. I’ve done things like this before, so I wasn’t as shocked. I’m going pretty cheap,” Westcott said.
WHS Principal Charles Jendrysik and Assistant Principal Kevin Zdroykowski were observing their students’ transactions. “So many of the students from Westfield High School are discussing things they normally wouldn’t. This gives them the tools to help them in the future when they get out of school,” Jendrysik said, adding, “It’s always a great event, and fun for the students.
