Southeast Missouri State University student publication

"Balling on a Budget" helps students gain financial understanding

Monday, March 30, 2015

Southeast Missouri State University will host the Balling on a Budget event as an interactive way to teach financial literacy.

Steven Taylor, the coordinator of university tutorial services, said that this is a part of a national movement to get universities to make people financially savvy.

"It's in the set goals of 2025," Taylor said "... [We're] finding ways to reduce student loan debt, to reduce credit card debt, to make sure those students are financially responsible, most importantly, to make sure those students are not damaging their credit -- understanding that you cannot be out here 'balling on a budget' when you don't have the money in the first place."

Taylor said that the event on April 1 will help students who have extra money and no plans for it and people who need to learn how to make a plan for their money.

Academic Specialist Rashaun Henry said that he tries to create events that appeal to everyone, and Balling on a Budget is open to the community free of charge. Events like Balling on a Budget result from a revision process where Henry uses surveys from previous financial seminars to learn what issues need to be addressed.

"First and foremost, we've seen a lot of students get themselves into some serious debt, including interests, student loans and credit card debt," Taylor said. "They need to be financially literate; that's very important."

Taylor said that the second issue that Balling on a Budget will address is limited exposure to budgeting, credit information and the importance of saving.

"Second of all, there are students that don't understand that what's your gross pay and what you take home are two different things," Taylor said. "You have a lot of college students who're thinking, 'I'm about to make $30,000 a month.' Well, that's before taxes. After taxes, you probably bring home $25,000 or $23,000."

Henry warned against hidden and unexpected fees. Henry said that many students do not fully understand credit or the importance of saving.

"One of the number one reasons we see people drop out is not because they can't do the work, it's because they can't afford to go to school." Henry said. "They aren't budgeting their money correctly. They don't anticipate a certain fee. They don't understand every hidden fee in their classes."

Henry said that students will be tempted to use credit cards for purposes other than unexpected costs.

"If you're already utilizing 95 percent to 80 percent of your credit utilization of your credit card, then you're still hurting your credit because you're not seen as a responsible creditor," Henry said. "So you have to make sure you know those particular things, and you're not taking 10 years to pay off a pizza you [bought] in college or something like that."

Taylor described the event as "formal" but interactive. He expects the audience to participate in the activities that accompany the information, and he plans for people to form groups at their tables.

"The plan is to identify how they would define 'balling on a budget,'" Taylor said. "That's going to be a group activity that they're going to incorporate as a group. Give us some snippets on what you think that means. Second of all, we are going to have students create their own budget."

Taylor described the goal of financial literacy as "an ongoing process" where they will continue to host events like Balling on a Budget.

However, Taylor and Henry are available for sharing this information on a person-to-person basis as well.

"Any information that we share is not going to be confined to just a meeting room," Henry said. "Anybody can come up to our office. All the staff members here to my knowledge are certified personal financial managers. Even if you are not a part of our program, you can talk to one of us about a budget."

Henry usually hosts three to four seminars per semester. He wants the next seminar to focus on cash flow management, and he wants to invite an experienced banker to speak about how credit affects life after college.

"A lot of people don't understand that their choices now affect them when they want to get their house, when they want to get their cars or their family, and even when they're applying for their jobs" Henry said. "A lot of jobs will actually now look at your credit score when you apply for a job, and it means the difference between you and another candidate who's pretty similar."

The event will take place at noon at the University Center Indian Room. Balling on a Budget is sponsored by Academic Support Centers.

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