Virginia is a leader in financial education and economics, thanks to the efforts of banks, teachers, school administrators, and other organizations that promote financial literacy in the state. Virginia requires that certain students enrolled in public high school take a certain number of credits in social studies, including a certain number of credits in financial education. This instruction must include the skills necessary to develop a personal financial plan. The Empire State Development Corporation has established a nonprofit development office to help nonprofit organizations with business development, capacity building, technical support, and education, including financial education.School districts can apply for grants for professional development scholarships related to financial education.
The Department of Corrections has established the Re-Imagine Program at the Sterling Correctional Center to provide program participants with resources to support their rehabilitation and reduce recidivism. This includes sessions on personal finance and mental health. The Mississippi Savings Initiative has authorized the creation of individual development accounts for low-income individuals that can be used for certain purposes. School districts in Virginia must provide students in grades nine through twelve with a complete unit of instruction designed to promote consumer awareness and financial education. The Department of Education must allocate funds for the purchase of financial education teaching materials aligned with standards for kindergarten through twelfth grade and for professional development in that content.
The Department must also communicate to school districts, county education offices, and charter schools the content of financial education within the framework of history and social sciences and other frameworks, as well as strategies to expand the supply and increase the quality of financial education education. School districts, collegiate districts, and public charter schools serving students from ninth to twelfth grades must provide all students from ninth to twelfth grades with one or more courses in personal financial education and money management. Instruction must include basic areas of competence such as budgeting, banking services, credit management, insurance, investments, retirement planning, taxes, and consumer protection. The Department of Financial Services has eliminated provisions that prohibit individuals holding specific insurance licenses from holding other insurance licenses. It has also provided for the disposal of funds received by title insurance agencies and funds that must be held in escrow trust accounts. The Training and Planning Act for Financial Security and Economic Development of the Workforce in Puerto Rico has established a public financial training policy that must be promoted in the Puerto Rico workforce to promote financial security and the preparation of people who work for retirement.
It has also activated a mandatory financial training program for all employees of the public system. The Act deals with vocational training programs and workforce development, develops programs and provides information on trade schools and careers for high school and high school students and high school graduates, establishes a working group to examine transportation barriers related to work-based learning programs, modifies the staff-to-apprentice ratio until June 30, 2025, requires an audit of workforce development programs and requires the teaching of financial literacy in schools. In addition to these initiatives, there are many other organizations that are dedicated to promoting financial literacy in Sterling, Virginia. These organizations offer classes on budgeting basics, credit management, investing strategies, retirement planning, tax preparation services, consumer protection laws, banking services, insurance policies, estate planning advice, and more. These classes are designed to help individuals gain a better understanding of their finances so they can make informed decisions about their money.
By taking advantage of these resources available in Sterling Virginia residents can become more financially literate.