SRP Federal Credit Union will fund a new program at the University of South Carolina Aiken to prepare students for financial success.
In Spring of 2024, USCA’s School of Business Administration launched a new personal money management course, which will support the addition of the SRP Pacer $mart Program, according to a press release from USCA.
The course objectives will provide students with tools and teach them the significance of personal financial success, including setting short-term and long-term goals, such as paying for one’s education or owning a home and avoiding excessive debt.
With a course designed to enhance students’ training and financial progression, students in the program will also have the opportunity to achieve an Intuit certification in personal finance.
“The goal is to take students from their current financial knowledge to the next level,” said Nancy Albers, dean of the School of Business Administration at USCA. “This partnership allows us to develop a co-branded interactive classroom learning environment.”
The specialized classroom is scheduled to be finished at the start of the Fall semester in August, and will support teaching with technology and experience.
“USCA’s School of Business Administration has a proven track record of preparing students for professional success, as well as emphasizing the importance of individuals and businesses focused on having a positive community impact,” said SRP CEO Eric Jenkins.
As the former CEO of Education Credit Union in Amarillo, Texas, Jenkins said they partnered with West Texas A&M University to offer a similar program for students and saw great progress on individuals’ understanding of significant monetary decisions.
“I was able to witness first-hand how much value was created for students because of the university and credit union collaborating to provide financial success tools,” he said.
Jenkins said he hopes such programs will lower the number of members SRP regularly works with who are in challenging financial situations due to mistakes made in early adulthood.
“Through Pacer $mart, we will help students not only avoid these costly types of financial mistakes but also teach them how to make the right decisions, which will lead to financial success,” he said.
Pacer $mart will also share financial success content with K-12 students through various programming opportunities, such as dual enrollment.
“This is a great opportunity for the School of Business Administration to step in and help deliver this is [knowledge] to the local school systems,” Albers said.
Albers also said she believes the program will ultimately facilitate “lifelong financial wellbeing,” which can lead to the wide betterment of many students and the local economy.
“I believe this partnership creates an important and timely program that aligns with the School of Business Administration initiatives to provide a positive impact on our community,” she said.
To find out more about the School of Business Administration and USCA’s new SRP Pacer $mart Program visit: https://www.usca.edu/academics/departments/business-administration/
