Iowa Insurance Division Announces Participation in the EVERFI National Financial Bee to Support Youth Financial Education

A new challenge, taking place during Financial Literacy Month, equips students with money management skills and encourages remote learning while social distancing 

Des Moines – The Iowa Insurance Division today announced that it is sponsoring the EVERFI National Financial Bee, taking place April 20-24, 2020. The National Financial Bee is a first-of-its-kind nationwide financial literacy challenge for students in 7th-10th grade.

As families across the country are struggling to balance work, childcare, and homeschooling amidst widespread school closures driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Financial Bee provides an opportunity for students to have some fun and learn critical financial concepts at home while social distancing.

The five-day challenge, created by social impact education innovator EVERFI, and supported by leading financial institutions nationwide, features a short daily digital lesson and capstone essay contest in which students will share a financial dream of theirs and how they plan to get there. Winners of the National Financial Bee will receive a total of $20,000 in college scholarships.

“During Financial Literacy Month, the Iowa Insurance Division is committed to engaging Iowans and increasing financial literacy,” said Iowa Insurance Commissioner Doug Ommen. “We are proud to be supporting parents and students at this time through the National Financial Bee and hope it helps drive dinner-table conversations about important financial topics.”

During each day of the challenge, participating students will gain new skills to create a personalized financial decision-making framework that they can apply to their lives now and in the future. Topics include spending and saving, credit and debt, employment and income, investing, and insurance.

“Across the country, families are facing unprecedented uncertainties and challenges. Parents are dealing with the loss of income or are adjusting to working from home, while students are trying to continue their studies outside of the classroom,” said Ray Martinez, founder, and president, EVERFI. “We’ve always been committed to helping students increase their financial literacy, and during this historic time we are also working to help parents feel secure -- and help students stay engaged. The National Financial Bee is a fun way for students to compete with their peers while social distancing.”

In addition to supporting the National Financial Bee, the Iowa Insurance Division sponsors the Iowa Financial Literacy Program through EVERFI which allows any Iowa high school to utilize the program at no cost. Since 2015, over 300 Iowa schools have used the Iowa Financial Literacy Program in their classrooms and more than 71,000 high school students have benefited from an online financial literacy platform that is both engaging to students and aligns with the Iowa Core essential financial literacy concepts and skills for high school students.

To learn more about the National Financial Bee, visit https://iid-iowa.everfi-next.net/welcome/national-financial-bee.

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