Welcome Graduates from the First Money Smarts Pay Course – November 18, 2014
Welcome Graduates from the First Money Smarts Pay Course – Arlington and Alexandria Virginia Cooperative Extension – November 18, 2014
On November 13, five women graduated from the inaugural course of the Money Smarts Pay program at Arlington Mill Residences. All of them took specific actions to improve their money management habits such as creating and sticking to a budget, saving money in an emergency fund, saving towards a down payment on a house, and working on paying down debts.
Money Smarts Pay is a new program that the Arlington and Alexandria Virginia Cooperative Extension began in August 2014 in collaboration with the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH). It combines two of the services that we have been providing for more than 20 years: one-on-one financial coaching and money management classes. Participants take three classes, each separated by a month, on the topics of goal setting and budgeting, credit and debt management, and saving strategies. In the weeks between the classes, participants meet with volunteer financial coaches who help them practice the skills that they learned in the class sessions and take the specific actions that were outlined for each session. The course culminates in an awards ceremony to honor the achievements of all of the participants.
