Empowering the Next Generation: Teaching Children to Save

Each year, Citi colleagues travel to classrooms and afterschool centers across the U.S. in support of Teach Children to Save (TCTS), the American Bankers Association Foundation’s campaign that inspires banking professionals to organize financial education activities for students. This year-round initiative is the U.S. banking industry’s largest volunteer effort helping young people to kickstart their financial futures.

Every April during National Financial Literacy Month, we celebrate our engagement in TCTS. In April alone, over 500 Citi volunteers visited classrooms and after-school programs, leveraging their banking knowledge and skills to teach students from grades K-8 the importance of saving and developing healthy money habits early in life.

Through a dynamic mix of activities, Citi volunteers helped students gain a better understanding of financial concepts and tools that will serve them well in the future. From a savings workshop and a Mets game for middle schoolers in New York City, to entrepreneurship-focused sessions for students at an elementary school in Irving, Texas, to financial education sessions with Operation HOPE in Atlanta, Georgia and The Boys and Girls Club in Fresno, California and more, Citi volunteers are harnessing their time and talent to empower the next generation of savers.

Being a parent of two sons, I know firsthand how essential it is to teach kids how to save at a young age. Kids who understand the importance of saving money and having healthy money habits are better positioned to achieve positive financial futures. And while I recognize this, I’m also aware that these conversations don’t happen enough. That’s why Citi created a downloadable tip sheet and collaborated with Junior Achievement representatives in Los Angeles, New Jersey and Washington, D.C. on an article to help inform parents seeking to have conversations with their children on saving, underscoring our efforts to help elevate financial education conversations among kids.

I remain inspired by the spirit that Citi colleagues continue to showcase through the TCTS campaign and our many other volunteer opportunities throughout the year. Teaching youth healthy financial habits is a powerful catalyst for economic prosperity and mobility, and I’m looking forward to continued success and generational impact in the years ahead.

A Note from the ABA Foundation:
“For more than 20 years, Citi has been a key partner and supporter of the ABA Foundation’s Teach Children to Save program,” said Lindsay Torrico, executive director, ABA Foundation. “Employee volunteers have reached thousands of children nationwide through Citi’s financial education outreach efforts and we’re grateful for their continued commitment to our shared goal of equipping the next generation with financial knowledge and guidance.”

Volunteer Voices: Hear from Citi Employees on the importance of TCTS