RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif. — A new program at a Rancho Cordova school is hoping to get students ready for the future.
The city of Rancho Cordova has partnered with the Folsom Cordova Community Partnership, SAFE Credit Union and Tri Counties Bank to support Rancho Cordova students in achieving their higher education goals and teach them about finances and saving by launching "Lincoln Goes to College," where all 75 fifth graders from Abraham Lincoln Elementary in Rancho Cordova can earn college savings.
With the program, each student gets a college savings account in their name and the chance to earn up to $150 for their account by completing financial literacy activities with their parents. The activities include math, reading and science exercises that help students understand how money is managed and saved, Rancho Cordova Council Member Donald Terry said.
The program is funded by the city, which is contributing $20,000, and a $5,000 grant from the City of Rancho Cordova’s Community Enhancement Fund and Tri Counties Bank. The students’ account will be monitored by SAFE Credit Union and Tri Counties Bank to make sure students are on track with the savings and money they are earning by completing activities.
“Just the fact that the student knows that there is some money there for that purpose, in their mind they’re thinking, 'I’m going to spend that on college one day',” Terry said.
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Recent research shows children with a savings account in their own name are six times more likely to go to college than children who don’t have an account. Terry, who introduced the idea to the city council, says the program is the city’s way of giving students and their families the extra push they need to attend college.
Students will also take field trips to a bank and a local college to learn both the importance of higher education and saving money for it.
Terry noted Rancho Cordova has one the biggest private job hubs in the region, but most require a college degree.
“We benefit from all of these great jobs in our city but a lot of times, its people commuting to our city to work,” Terry said.
He also believes the program will help local students land jobs in the future.
“We really want to make sure our residents are benefiting from these jobs,” Terry said.
Lincoln Goes to College will be tested at Lincoln Elementary during the 2019-2020 school year, but if the city receives good feedback, they will expand it to other schools in the area.
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