Assets. Investments. Net worth. These are the “buzz” words that often come up when hearing about finances. However, when tested on their financial skills, only around 50% of American adults are confident in their abilities to use those skills. Teaching students about financial literacy during adolescence is a key step in increasing that number. At West, sophomore Yash Bandiananthaiah took the first step to increase this number through founding the Financial Literacy Club. 

“Starting Financial Literacy Club was really important to me because I [not only] have a passion for finance and business, but I want students to learn more about [their] finances,” Bandiananthaiah said. 

Only 30 American states require high schoolers to complete a personal finance course before graduating. While West does implement this requirement, the attitude toward getting this education has begun to change. Personal Finance teacher Evan Stern has seen this change in real time. 

“In recent years, [students] have been deciding to take [Personal Finance] online, which I do teach, but it’s really quick. Personal Finance is only a semester [long in the first place], and it’s harder to fit what we want to do in one semester. Over the summer, it’s [only] six weeks. [We’re] not [able] to get much in-depth [information] in that quick of a timeframe. During the school year, [students] are going to get a lot more out of it,” Stern said.

Bandiananthaiah has also observed this shift in students’ course schedules and is determined to address the root of the issue through his new club. 

“I know finance is boring [for some], so with hands-on activities, [Financial Literacy Club] makes [learning] more fun and interesting [and] people remember [lessons],” Bandiananthaiah said. 

Breaking the stigma of financial literacy being boring is a team effort. Alongside Bandiananthaiah, sophomore Darsh Mahapatra has taken on the role of co-vice president. Together, the pair works to produce an innovative approach to their meetings. 

“To design [our meetings], we pick a [financial] topic and give members information about it. After we do that, the main part is the activity; we always have something interactive, like a game,” Mahapatra said.

So far, the meetings have covered the topics of budgeting and stocks. To teach budgeting, the officers split the meeting attendees into three teams and gave each team an imaginary $1,000. Given spending categories including food, transportation and entertainment, teams had two minutes to decide how they would split the money. After each two-minute round, the officers introduced “real-world scenarios” that potentially changed students’ decisions as to how they would spend their money. On the other hand, when covering the topic of stocks, the officers provided members with an imaginary $1,000 to invest in hypothetical companies. After members spent five minutes choosing where they would invest their money, they were faced with sudden drops or spikes in the market.

“Doing something [interactive] is [much] more effective than reading off of a slideshow because [members] actually get to [experience the effects of] trial and error,” Mahapatra said.

Along with Bandiananthaiah and Mahapatra, co-vice president and sophomore Rishi Pidikiti also plays a large role in managing the team. Together, the three have already been taking steps to expand the club’s reach and impact. 

“[Next year], we are hoping to [take part in] competitions, [such as an investment competition]. Another club [at West], Investment Club, participates in a stock market competition. It’s really cool because it simulates the real stock market, giving incentives for students [to] actually try hard and do good,” Pidikiti said.

The Wharton Global High School Investment Competition gives students $500,000 in imaginary money and simulates the real stock market. The competition enhances real-world decision-making skills, which is why the Financial Literacy Club’s officers want their members to participate. 

“Competitions [like these] help so much because it is literally the real world. It’s making sure we can put students out there. It’s different doing the activity in a classroom [versus] actually participating in what’s happening,” Pidikiti said. 

The various plans that the officers have will be a large change from this year, but it will increase student excitement when learning how to become financially independent and literate.  

“Right now, a lot of people think, ‘I’m just a kid,’ but if we’re able [to become literate] now, then people can set themselves up to be financially secure in the future. We all know the curveballs that life throws at us, so being able to feel [financially] secure is really important. This club is making sure that students are no longer apathetic [toward finance],” Pidikiti said.