PwC Teaches Financial Literacy to Students Across the Country

NEW YORK, March 10, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- For the second year in a row, PwC US is supporting Operation HOPE's FIVE MILLION KIDS (5MK) initiative, a five-year campaign designed to break the rate of the high school dropout epidemic by showing youth how to financially prosper in life. 850 PwC college interns will teach HOPE's award-winning curriculum, Banking on Our Future (BOOF), to more than 4,000 students in 15 major cities across the country. The curriculum includes: A Course in Dignity, The Basics of Banking, Checking & Savings Accounts, Credit and Investments.

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Alarming research shows that U.S. K-12 students lack proficiency in math and financial literacy. Results of a 2009 federal test showed fewer than four of 10 fourth-and eighth-graders are proficient in mathematics and a 2008 national survey by HOPE partner, the Jump $tart Coalition, found that less than half percent of high school students were financially literate. PwC, along with partners like Operation HOPE, can help to close the education gap by bringing its financial expertise to hundreds of classrooms across the country and encouraging students to pursue careers in mathematics and science.  

"Having a strong foundation on Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) is critical for the next generation of leaders as they begin to contribute to economic stability and competitiveness of the US workforce," says Shannon Schuyler, corporate responsibility leader, PwC.  "Financial literacy is a skill that our staff and interns have to share with the community to contribute to a sustainable marketplace and in turn learn important life and leadership skills."  

"In addition to teaching the life empowering content of the financial literacy curriculum, each PwC intern also serves as a role model for the youth in their classroom who are not accustomed to interacting with young professionals," said Mary L. Hagerty, HOPE's first senior vice president and global chief of financial literacy, "Without even knowing, they are inspiring the youth to say, 'I can be just like them.'"

PwC's winter season interns are providing their skills and time to help educate elementary, middle and high school students as part of their PwC Intern Experience. The PwC Intern Experience is designed to give the interns an understanding of PwC's commitment to service, youth education and leadership development. 

PwC's continued support of Operation HOPE's 5MK initiative is part of its overarching commitment to youth education and developing future leaders. In its 2010 fiscal year, the firm donated $8.8 million in support of causes related to strengthening youth education by working closely with organizations such as Feeding America and MIND Research Institute and through initiatives such as Change the Equation, to support children at all phases of their educational journey and prepare them for today's complex marketplace. PwC employees also supported local educational efforts through PwC's Summer of Community Service program where company volunteers reached almost 70,000 children via service activities around learning.  

For more information on PwC's commitment to youth education and corporate responsibility, visit: http://www.pwc.com/us/en/about-us/corporate-responsibility/index.jhtml.

About PwC

PwC (www.pwc.com) provides industry-focused assurance, tax and advisory services to build public trust and enhance value for its clients and their stakeholders. More than 163,000 people in 151 countries across our network share their thinking, experience and solutions to develop fresh perspectives and practical advice.

© 2011 PwC.  All rights reserved. In this document, "PwC" refers to PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, a Delaware limited liability partnership, which is a member firm of PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited, each member firm of which is a separate legal entity.

About Operation HOPE, Inc.

Founded in 1992, the mission of social economic empowerment nonprofit Operation HOPE (HOPE) is to expand economic opportunity in under-resourced communities through financial literacy education. HOPE promotes "silver rights" – making free enterprise and capitalism relevant and effective for the underserved. Serving more than 1.4 million people, raising more than $500 million and directing, funding and restructuring nearly $500 million more in mortgages and economic support from the private sector, for a total of approximately $1 billion dollars in economic activity, HOPE seeks dignity and empowerment for all. Follow Operation HOPE at www.operationhope.org, www.twitter.com/operationhope, and www.facebook.com/operationhope.

SOURCE PwC