Students in Amy Schultze’s personal finance class at Jamestown High School, a JCC College Connections course, went on a number of field trips to learn about the importance of building their “financial tool belt including at the Northwest Bank in downtown Jamestown.
Before teaching, Amy Schultze helped run her family business – a local hardware store – where she aimed to help customers build their own tool belt.
Now a business professor at Jamestown High School, she is excited by the possibility of helping the next generation of JHS students build their “financial tool belt” and earn college credit in the process.
Schultze teaches BUS 1610 – Personal Finance at Jamestown High School, a course available through SUNY Jamestown Community College’s College Connections program and designed for “providing students with the tools to succeed financially.”
“Students create a customized ‘tool belt’ based on their own financial goals. » Schultze said. “We discuss the importance of setting short, medium and long term goals and each learner’s goals vary depending on what they consider to be financially successful. The main takeaway from this course: it’s not what you get, it’s what you save. »
The course also encompasses a variety of other aspects such as the difference between saving and investing; simple interest versus compound interest; and the differences between grants, loans and grants. They will also participate in Junior Achievement’s WNY Fall 2022 Stock Market Challenge in November.
Amy Schultze (right), accompanied by Austin Harmon (left), 2014 JHS graduate and business manager of Shults Nissan Subaru, walks through the process of buying a car with her class during a recent visit at the dealership.
The field experience was also of the utmost importance to Schultze: in September, the students visited the Northwest Bank to learn about the importance of building relationships with your local bank; in early October, they attended a New York State-sponsored job fair and heard from partners at Jamestown Business College about the importance of completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA); and most recently learned the basics of car buying and maintenance from representatives of Shults Auto Group and learned the importance of managing finances during a visit to Summit Wealth Management.
Field visits are also scheduled to the Legend Group and the Southern Chautauqua Federal Credit Union later in the semester.
“My hope for all students is that they are able to fill their ‘financial tool belt’ for current and future use,” Schultze said.
“For example, students may not be ready to buy their first vehicle today. But hopefully by the time they’re done with the class, between research, activities, and the Shults Nissan Subaru field trip, they’ll feel a little more familiar with the car buying process. .
This field experience was especially meaningful for JHS sophomore Owen Caswell.
“My favorite thing so far has been learning about auto loans,” he said. “It’s important to me because I’ll be getting my license soon and although some aspects of buying a car are familiar to me, there are a lot of things I’ve learned that I’ll need to take into account during the course. of this process.
Caswell also appreciated Schultze’s insight in the classroom.
“She’s a friendly teacher and she created a great environment in the classroom,” he said. “She makes learning these things fun.”
“The whole class was very informative on what to expect as an adult,” he concluded.
“As we send our students out into the world, I just want them to be prepared,” Schultze said. I’m referring to a quote from (American financier) Suze Orman that “succeeding in America means you’re able to sleep at night, and not worry when you get up in the morning, how are you going to pay your bills.” . …Smile for the things you have, not the things you wish you had done.