In her welcome to Boston Public Schools (BPS) students outside City Hall Thursday, Disabilities Commissioner Kristen McCosh encouraged them to “learn a lot, ask a lot of questions” of the banks and credit unions that had come to meet with
When it comes to teaching young people about credit, Alicia Sasser Modestino jokes that adults are about as wary of the topic as they are of sex ed: “Adults are afraid if they teach kids about it, they’ll want to
For many Boston residents, “credit” can be a scary word. A reminder of money mistakes. A score to avoid. A part of an inscrutable financial system. Roxbury resident Cynthia Jones had gotten to the point of dreading her mail. “When
In celebration of America Saves Week, the City of Boston held a series of free financial empowerment events for Boston residents from February 25 to March 2. The week’s activities included tax preparation, credit-building workshops, and savings fairs, as well as
Alan Gentle was in his office, chipping away at the administrative details of his staff’s financial work – when the phone rang. It was the Boston Municipal Research Bureau calling with exciting news: Gentle had been selected as one of
Gosia Tomaszewska has been hired as the program manager for Boston Saves, the City of Boston’s children savings account program. Tomaszewska brings to her new role years of experience working on financial education programs with the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, the
A key wedge driving the gap between Boston’s affluent and low- and middle-income residents is credit. While good credit opens the door to low-cost loans, poor or no credit can make innumerable life transactions more expensive, from car loans to
Too many adults fail to appreciate the value of good credit until they’ve suffered the consequences of poor or no credit: diminished opportunity for jobs or housing, exorbitant loan or interest rates, limited access to further credit. But could these
Everyone has money problems. But that’s especially true for young people facing serious employment barriers – such as poverty, unstable housing, or a lack of education or English fluency. For these young people, money can evoke stress or shame. Their family history may bear