(Archived Content)
FROM THE OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS
JS-1530
Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Financial Education Dan Iannicola, Jr. today joined a roundtable discussion in New Orleans which focused on financial education initiatives in Louisiana and Mississippi. Educators, financial education advocates, and government officials discussed strategies for promoting and providing financial education to adults and children at the local level. While in New Orleans, Mr. Iannicola also delivered remarks about Treasury's goal of giving all Americans access to financial education at this year's American Association of Debt Management (AADMO) Spring Conference.
Providing reliable and sound financial education information is crucial to improving people's lives and helping them avoid costly mistakes, said Iannicola. Thanks to the President's Jobs and Growth Package Americans get to keep more of their own hard earned money. Though innovative financial education programs Americans can learn to manage that money better, Iannicola went on to say.
Various educators and financial education advocates from Louisiana and Mississippi participated in today's roundtable discussion. Participants included Roy Franc Bass, University of New Orleans; Phyllis Cassidy, Good Work Network; Yvonne Ferguson, Bancorp South, Mississippi Jump$tart; Neil Goslin, National Center for the Urban Community, Tulane University; Julie McAdory, Consumer Credit Counseling Services of Greater New Orleans; Nia Richard, Consumer Credit Counseling Services of Greater New Orleans; Diane Puderer, Internal Revenue Service; Inger Richard, Neighborhood Housing Services of New Orleans, Inc.; Jeannette Tucker, Louisiana State University Cooperative Extension Service; Kirk Tucker; Ken Uffman, Credit Bureau of Baton Rouge, Louisiana Jump$tart Coalition; Nancy Montoya, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta; and Claire Loupe, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
AADMO's is the largest trade association in the credit counseling and debt management industry with over 140 members. The organization's stated mission is to provide its members and the public with information about the credit and debt counseling industry. Conference attendees included government officials and AADMO members including, debt management organizations, consumer counselors, personal finance educators, credit and debt information publishers, debt pooling organizations, debt negotiators, debt adjusters, credit counselors, consumer lawyers and more.
The Department of the Treasury is a leader in supporting financial education. Treasury established the Office of Financial Education (Office) in May 2002. The Office works to promote access to the financial education tools that can help Americans make wiser choices in all areas of personal financial management, with a special emphasis on, saving, credit management, home ownership and retirement planning. The OFE also coordinates the efforts of the Financial Literacy and Education Commission, a group chaired by the Secretary of Treasury and composed of representatives from 20 federal departments, agencies, and commissions, which works to improve financial literacy and education for people throughout the United States. For more information about the Office of Financial Education visit: www.treas.gov/financialeducation.