6/30/2023 0 Comments Big blocks for kids![]() ![]() How to evaluate a program like College Kids? And with a large number of participants failing to opt in for additional incentives beyond the seed funds, and a program design that will leave many others unable to reclaim city-donated funds at graduation, it’s worth questioning whether the city’s relatively modest investment will do anything to help anyone get to college - or if it’s all just window dressing. Only 15% of accounts have grown past the $50 seed level. The treasurer’s office will likely spend at least another $1.5 million on the program before the first high school graduates touch any of the money, which won’t be until 2028 at the earliest.īut seven years since the program’s launch, College Kids has failed to attract much philanthropic investment, and all but a relatively few accounts have remained stuck at strikingly small balances. That adds up to about $2 million since College Kids began. So far, the treasurer’s office has invested an average of almost $300,000 per year - a figure that includes seed deposits, incentives, staff salaries and donations - into the program. Once the student graduates from a public or charter high school in the city, the funds can be withdrawn for college or a trade school. Participants can receive up to $100 in matching deposits and up to $50 for financial education. The accounts are expected to grow year by year through city-funded incentives and charitable and personal donations. Louis city - 2,307 College Kids accounts were created in 2022 alone - providing them with savings accounts at Alltru Credit Union and “seeding” each with a $50 deposit. Louis University in Midtown.Įach year, the treasurer’s office automatically enrolls all the public- and charter-school kindergarten students in St. Jones speaks about modernizing city services and functions during her 2023 State of the City address on Tuesday, April 25, 2023, at the campus of St. “College Kids provides an opportunity for students to get a jump start on college savings, and encourages parents and guardians to increase their financial capability through participation in financial education courses.” ![]() “As an elected official, I believe every student should have access to resources to achieve their dream of a college education,” Jones said at the program’s December 2015 unveiling. Today College Kids has grown to more than 23,000 accounts. Like counterparts nationwide, College Kids is premised on research that shows children who begin saving for college, even in amounts of less than $500, are three times more likely to continue on to a post-secondary education than students who do not, and four times more likely to graduate. ![]() More broadly, programs like College Kids are meant to motivate kids from moderate- and low-income backgrounds into developing a college-bound mindset. The aim: to help the city’s public- and charter-school families, especially those from the poorest neighborhoods, save money for college and learn financial literacy. It became one of Jones’ signature achievements, touted during her successful 2021 mayoral run. Tishaura Jones set up College Kids while serving as city treasurer. ![]() Louis parking meter or paid one of the city’s increasingly expensive parking tickets since 2016, then you’ve put money into the system that pays for the College Kids Children’s Savings Account program. ![]()
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