Financial Education in Alabama

Tax Hotlines

The Alabama Society of CPAs holds three live television Tax Hotlines in partnership with TV stations in the state’s three largest cities: Birmingham, Mobile, and Montgomery.  Held during the second week of February each year, more than 1000 calls are fielded during two-hour sessions manned by member CPA volunteers.

SaveFirst

Each January 2000 copies of the ASCPA’s Financial Fitness Calendar are distributed to SaveFirst, a program of Impact Alabama.  SaveFirst is a free income tax preparation program led by IRS-certified accounting and law students at 25+ locations across the state.  Many of the ASCPA’s scholarship students and other student members participate.  

Campus Peer-to-Peer Financial Education

The Campus Ambassadors, recipients of Educational Foundation Scholarships, hold events on their campuses during Financial Literacy Month in April.  As future CPAs, they will encourage fellow students to consider the impact of the financial decisions they make.  The ASCPA will provide goodies and printed materials.  Events will be hosted by Beta Alpha Psi, NABA or accounting club chapters or be independently sponsored.

Central Alabama Financial Education Coalition (CAFEC)

The Alabama Society of CPAs plays a central role in this organization of 20+ for-profit and non-profit entities, all of whom have a strong commitment to improving financial education across Alabama. ASCPA Communications Director Diane Christy will assume the position of chairman of the board of directors in 2011.  The Birmingham Young CPAs participated in an annual Financial Fitness Fair in January 2010, jointly sponsored by CAFEC and the United Way of Central Alabama. The ASCPA furnished materials, give-away goodies and provided piggy banks as door prizes.  Benjamin Bankes was available for photo opportunities.  The CAFEC website, www.mymoneysmarts.org, will be fully developed during 2010 and will offer a wide range of free financial education resources for consumers, including links to ASCPA’s Free CPA Referral Service, as well as Feed the Pig and 360 Degrees of Financial Literacy website links.

Alpha Kappa Alpha Partnership

The ASCPA is a partner with the Fairfield, Alabama chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha in their quest to take the message of financial literacy to every school in the Fairfield system.  They used the Feed the Pig for Tweens materials for elementary age children and the National Endowment for Financial Education’s High School Financial Preparedness Program materials for middle and high schools.  They are developing a template for other AKA chapters so the program can expand statewide.

Dollars and Sense

Alabama Young CPAs completed the second annual one-day classroom blitz in Alabama high schools in November 2009.  They made presentations on financial education to 2500 students in 43 schools, with 53 volunteers. The Young CPAs used the “Good Debt, Bad Debt” chapter from the NEFE materials for their visits. One of the critical elements of the program is creating a resource for teachers – many have invited the Young CPAs back to their classrooms to talk specifically about careers in accounting. 

Financial Education Town Halls

While still in the planning stage, the ASCPA will hold financial education programs in partnership with the Chamber of Commerce Association and the League of Southeastern Credit Unions in spring 2010.  Designed for the general public and held in underserved communities, a CPA volunteer will deliver a 30-40 minutes presentation from the National Endowment for Financial Education High School Financial Preparedness Program materials and will be available for questions at the conclusion.