Cashing in on credit

A group of Eastern View High School government students received an education in finance last week thanks to three Wachovia representatives.

As part of the annual “Get Smart About Credit Program,” Wachovia/

Wells Fargo, in conjunction with the American Bankers Association, sends employees into their communities to promote economic development and money management skills through a financial literacy presentation.

The idea is to educate students early in life to give them a better advantage in dealing with their credit and handling credit cards as adults.

About 60 high school seniors listened to a 25-minute presentation Wednesday morning inside the school’s forum.

Donna Edwards, customer sales associate, began with a few statistics from handsonbanking.org. She said more than 4,000 high school seniors nationwide were recently tested on the basics of money management, and nearly 50 percent failed the test.

She added that almost half of college students pay late fees on their credit cards and 7 percent have their cards canceled due to late fees.

Cheryl Jackson, a Wachovia teller, stressed the importance of managing your money early.

“A lot of you guys buy coffee at Starbucks in the mornings, but if you just put that money in a savings account, that money would add up over time,” she suggested.

Wachovia financial specialist Mark Critchfield also reminded the students to pay their bills before or on the due date.

“If you don’t pay that bill on time, it will show up on as a negative reflection on your credit report,” he warned.

Before the presentation, EVHS government teacher Brad Miller shared with the students that he wished someone had visited his high school to educate him about credit cards and money management before entering college.

“I didn’t get this opportunity,” he said.

All three representatives, who work at Wachovia’s Marketplace Financial Centre in front of Kohl’s on Bus. 29, offered to assist the students who needed help setting up or learning about a savings account.

Listening attentively, EVHS senior Joseph Dean, 17, said he learned a great deal about money and how to manage it.

“Credit is a good way to help you and a good way to ruin your life if treated improperly,” Dean said. “But if you treat it right, it can help you in every way that you need down the road. It’s a very important thing to have. In today’s time, you can’t live without it.”