Junior Achievement (JA) of Tampa Bay recently announced that it has received grants totaling $18,000 to fund JA’s work readiness and financial literacy programming. The grants, from State Farm Insurance, are part of a larger statewide initiative totaling $60,000 that will support Junior Achievement programs in 11 localities throughout Florida, enabling over 5,000 young people to participate in JA’s nationally recognized economic education programs.
“The mission of State Farm® is to help people manage the risks of everyday life, recover from the unexpected and realize their dreams” shares Jose Soto, State Farm public affairs specialist. “JA programs help all students improve their financial literacy, however, a high percentage of low to moderate income students are likely to derive greater benefit from the programs.”
Richard George, President of Junior Achievement of Tampa Bay, explained, “Many students lack the basic information they need to make good education, career and financial decisions. They need to know about employment opportunities and the skills they need to open some of the career doors that are available to them. They also need a basic understanding of how to successfully manage their personal finances.”
Locally, the $6,000 allocation of State Farm funds to Junior Achievement of Tampa Bay/Hillsborough County partially funds 847 low to moderate income students to attend JA BizTown or JA Finance Park; both programs help students identify and practice the skills they need to find and keep a job and to manage personal finances.
Elsewhere in the Tampa Bay area, JA of Tampa Bay/Sarasota received $5,000 in State Farm funds and JA of Tampa Bay/Polk/Highlands received $7,000 to support Junior Achievement financial literacy classes for over 400 low and moderate income students.
Junior Achievement of Tampa Bay inspired 81,307 students through the support of 6,904 volunteers in the 12-county region. Junior Achievement is a nonprofit organization that delivers K-12 programming for entrepreneurship, financial literacy and career readiness including two capstone programs of JA BizTown and JA Finance Park
For more information, visit jatampabay.org. For more information on State Farm, visit www.statefarm.com.
