On October 13, 2017, over 100 professionals, policymakers and financial literacy supporters joined the Connecticut Jump$tart Coalition to explore the challenge of using financial education to stem the student debt crisis. We thank all of the sponsors, speakers and, especially, attendees who made the 2017 Connecticut Financial Literacy Summit our best conference to date.
Among the highlights, keynoter Adam Carroll — financial advocate, educator and documentarian — offered his views on how our digital currency culture makes it more difficult for young people to understand the full impact of their borrowing decisions. He also gave attendees an extensive list of approaches and ideas to bring students back to the “real” world of money.
During the luncheon, Bonnie Latreille from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau presented a comprehensive overview of student-loan servicing and the difficulties facing the agency in enforcing the rights of borrowers. Conferees also learned about tax-advantaged college savings plans, a new and free online college decision-making simulation, the state’s recently-introduced CT Dollars & Sense information portal, non-college routes to career success, and the potential for making college in Connecticut “debt-free.”We hope that both attendees and those who couldn’t join us will take advantage of the following links to sites and resources discussed during the Summit:
- Adam Carroll
- Connecticut Colleges & Universities Tuition Changes
- Mapping Student Debt: How Borrowing for College Affects the Nation
- Next Gen Personal Finance
- CT Dollars & Sense Financial Literacy Portal
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: Information on Student Loans
- Patriot Bank White Paper: Commitment to Financial Literacy 2017