Saving and dreaming for the future
November 7, 2018Kickstart to Career Newaygo County
After launching in March, Kickstart to Career Newaygo County is officially underway this fall! Kickstart to Career is a children’s savings account program designed to build aspirations, encourage savings, increase financial education, and assist with college or career expenses. In addition to an initial $50 deposit from the Community Foundation, students can earn additional contributions each year and families and friends can make deposits at any time. ChoiceOne Bank will also partner with schools to offer financial education at every grade level.
“Not only will this help with learning about savings and dreaming for the future, but research shows that children with savings accounts also have better math and reading scores and higher rates of enrollment in college,” said Todd Jacobs, vice president and chief philanthropy officer at the Community Foundation.
Kickstart to Career will impact students entering kindergarten from 2018 through 2027. It will serve more than 7,000 students total and include more than $3.4 million in deposits from the Community Foundation over the next 10 years.
In August, Community Foundation and ChoiceOne Bank staff attended school open houses to talk to parents about the program. Parent packets will be distributed this fall with more information and a form to return. Savings accounts will be open and ready for deposits in December.
