BIG BANK THEORY OFFERS EYE-OPENING EXPERIENCE FOR SENIORS

The Big Bank Theory made its way to Manatee High School on October 30th and 31st to teach seniors the value of education, responsible spending habits, resourcefulness, and problem-solving. This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, offered by the Manatee Chamber of Commerce, was staffed by generous volunteers from the community.

This session starts by providing each participant with a random identity card that lists their occupation, yearly salary, monthly income, relationship status, and whether they have kids. Each student’s job is to make purchases and judgements based on their assigned identity, with the goal being to have a reasonable amount of money at the end.

Over the course of this 2-day event, seniors spent time walking around to a variety of booths representing different aspects of life such as finding a place to live, buying a car, opening a credit card, buying medical insurance, and paying for child-care services (if it applies). In order to stay afloat, a number of students were driven to obtain a second job at the Job Services booth, or earn a higher degree at the USF booth.

DID ANYTHING SURPRISE YOU? IF SO, DID YOU HAVE TO PROBLEM-SOLVE TO SAVE MONEY?

“It surprised me how hard it was to be a single parent and how expensive children are. I had to join the army reserves for extra money and their insurance benefits.”
Noah DisherManatee High School, 12th Grade
“I was mostly surprised how expensive everything is and how hard it is to make ends meet. I had to get a second job and join the army reserve for the benefits.”
Albert Molina-SierraManatee High School, 12th Grade
“I was surprised by the lack of credit needed to purchase property and real estate. I often had to find shortcuts and advances like joining the reserve to significantly lower some costs.”
Kipras VitasManatee High School, 12th Grade
“I took away that as an adult, there were much more expenses than I thought. I thought child care prices were ridiculous. I had to get a second job to get by.”
Jake BurdetteManatee High School, 12th Grade
“I was not expecting child care to be so expensive. I had to get a second job and chose to enlist in the army reserve which saved me when it came to insurance.”
Jaime StrattonManatee High School, 12th Grade
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In addition to these booths, there were also tables that allowed for students to learn and participate in ways to get a head-start on their future. At the FAFSA booth, students had the opportunity to speak with a federal aid representative who taught them the benefits of applying and gave them information on how to open an account. This event also featured a voter registration booth that impressively acquired 80+ new voters on the 1st day of the program!

HOW VALUABLE DO YOU BELIEVE THIS PROGRAM TO BE? SHOULD THIS PROGRAM BE CONTINUED IN THE FUTURE?

“I learned that it pays to make smart financial decisions and that sometimes you have to get creative with your money to survive. I believe this program is a valuable way to teach teens the power of budgeting. Yes, it should be continued in the future.”
Noah DisherManatee High School, 12th Grade
“I realized how costly and expensive everything is in the real world and how necessary it is to reduce spending. I believe the program has a lot of value since it sort of gives you a reality check in a fun and interactive way. I believe it should be continued because it teaches a good lesson and gives us a moment to plan for our future.”
Albert Molina-SierraManatee High School, 12th Grade
“I took away from the Big Bank Theory a lot of interesting details surrounding what my monthly payments would be for my dream job. I think the program was decently valuable as it revealed how you should expect managing your money to look like. I think this program should be continued as many seniors don’t get information like this.”
Kipras VitasManatee High School, 12th Grade
“I learned the importance of budgeting and thinking about my purchases and how it would affect the rest of the month. I believe this program was extremely valuable for young adults to participate in. I definitely believe that this program should be continued because of the skills and lessons taught.
Jaime StrattonManatee High School, 12th Grade
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