This page contains links to external websites. These links are provided as a convenience and for informational purposes only; they do not constitute an endorsement or an approval by Pennsylvania Assistive Technology Foundation of any of the products, services, or opinions of the corporation or organization or individual. Read our full website disclaimer.
There are a number of financial education resources that you may find useful outside of StudyMoney.us. This list is by no means exhaustive, but it is a good place to start. We have included a few websites that have games. We think games are fun to play and can help reinforce some of the concepts that are included in this website. We have also included a number of websites that contain links to other valuable resources. Please let us know if you find additional resources not on this list that we should include.
Bank of America teamed up with Khan Academy to create Better Money Habits, a free financial education platform for people from all walks of life to get practical, easy-to-understand knowledge about money. With hundreds of engaging videos, articles, and resources, anyone can find precisely the right tools and information for their situation.
Written by a millennial herself, this book is both entertaining and full of useful financial information that will help you get a grip on your personal finances. With a conversational and relatable tone, Broke Millennial is geared toward the 20-something crowd, but there are details in here that anyone would benefit from.
Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency’s (PHFA) website, Building Your Financial House, offers a curriculum of comprehensive financial education addressing investing in yourself, maximizing earnings, spending sensibly, checking taxes, making money work through saving and investing, protecting your financial potential, and borrowing to grow.
If you find yourself in need of help with credit counseling services, which include debt consolidation assistance and budgeting counseling, visit the website of the Pennsylvania Bar Association. You can find a list of approved agencies that provide credit counseling in Pennsylvania, and other related resources.
Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA) has a network of counselors throughout the state who provide free credit counseling, financial counseling and coaching, financial education, housing counseling, and first-time homebuyer education. Use the search tool to find a counseling agency in your county.
Pennsylvania has two Financial Empowerment Centers: one in Philadelphia, and another in Pittsburgh. Financial Empowerment Centers offer professional, one-on-one financial counseling as a free public service to enable residents to address their financial challenges and needs and plan for their futures.
The Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy is a coalition of organizations that share an interest in advancing financial literacy among students. Jump$tart’s online clearinghouse has a very comprehensive collection of financial education resources, including booklets and pamphlets on specific topics, activities, online games, and teacher lesson plans.
* Instructors may find this resource particularly useful.
A cooperative effort of the Pennsylvania Department of Education and Penn State University, the Making Cents Project is working to improve financial education in Pennsylvania schools. Making Cents provides professional development for Pennsylvania educators, maintains a database of educators interested in personal finance and economic education, disseminates information to educators, curates financial education curriculum and resources, and researches the status of personal finance and economic education in the Commonwealth.
* Instructors may find this resource particularly useful.
Created by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Money Smart is a comprehensive financial education curriculum that teaches the basics of handling money and finances, including how to budget, save money, and how to avoid making wrong decisions that may result in years of financial pain. The curriculum is available free of charge. There is also an instructor-led curriculum that includes specific information and supports for adult participants with disabilities. For additional information, call toll-free 877-275-3342.
* Instructors may find this resource particularly useful.
This personal finance site has articles on practically everything you might need to know about managing your finances. Search around under a specific topic (like credit cards, debt payoff, or home buying) or check back regularly to find articles on the latest subjects in personal finance. For more information, visit MoneyUnder30.com.
MyMoney.gov is the U.S. government’s website dedicated to financial education. Resources are available to learn about budgeting, credit building, financial planning, understanding privacy issues, saving, and investing. There are links to other government programs that offer financial educational, such as Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Federal Trade Commission. For more information, visit MyMoney.gov or call 1-800-FED-INFO (333-4636).
As the nation’s largest financial counseling organization, National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC) provides information about all of the non-profit credit counseling agencies in Pennsylvania. Credit counselors provide such services as credit/debt counseling, bankruptcy counseling, housing and mortgage counseling, and student loan debt counseling. For more information, go to www.nfcc.org.
A non-profit organization with offices in Southeastern Pennsylvania, Pathways PA has several programs that are designed to help “women, teens, children and families achieve economic independence and family well-being.” Pathways PA has published several booklets on financial education and they, along with their volunteers, offer free tax preparation to filers through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. For more information, visit their website www.pathwayspa.org or call 610-543-5022.
To help people learn about the essentials of personal finance, Visa has partnered with consumer advocates, educators, and financial institutions to develop the Practical Money Skills programs. You can access free educational resources, including personal finance articles, lesson plans, and games (including the popular Financial Football and Soccer games) from their website, www.practicalmoneyskills.com.
The USA.gov website has a section full of information to help you make better choices when buying products and services. There are tips about preventing identity theft, understanding credit, managing debt, purchasing a car, how to rent an apartment, how to file a complaint about a purchase, and so much more. They also provide some resources specifically for people with disabilities and seniors.
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) developed a toolkit, Your Money, Your Goals, for front-line staff and volunteers who work with individuals who are interested in establishing goals, learning about and choosing financial products, and building skills in managing money. There are free, downloadable booklets on such topics as savings, managing your bills and debt, and credit for students, people with disabilities, veterans and service members, and older adults and caregivers.
* Instructors may find this resource particularly useful.
The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services has assistance offices in every county. These offices can help individuals determine eligibility for government programs and access additional services. | Benefits Hotline 800-692-7462 or Disability Services 800-753-8827 | dhs.pa.gov/Services/Assistance/Pages/CAO-Contact.aspx
This office of the state’s Department of Labor and Industry provides vocational rehabilitation services to help persons with disabilities prepare for, obtain, or maintain employment. There are 22 district offices throughout the Commonwealth. | 800-442-6351 or 717-787-5244 | dli.pa.gov/Individuals/Disability-Services/ovr/Pages/OVR-Office-Directory.aspx
During tax season, individuals who earn $58,000 or less, persons with disabilities, and limited English-speaking taxpayers who need assistance in preparing their own tax returns can seek assistance with filing their taxes from these free, volunteer-led programs. | 800-906-9887 | irs.gov/individuals/find-a-location-for-free-tax-prep
There are four Work Incentives for Planning and Assistance (WIPA) agencies in the state. To find out which agency covers your county contact one of the three listed below:
AHEDD
Joy Smith
Program Director/Community Work Incentive Coordinator
866-902-4333
joy.smith@ahedd.org
Adams, Allegheny, Armstrong, Bedford, Blair, Bradford, Butler, Cambria, Cameron, Centre, Clarion, Clearfield, Clinton, Crawford, Cumberland, Dauphin, Elk, Erie, Forest, Franklin, Fulton, Huntingdon, Indiana, Jefferson, Juniata, Lycoming, McKean, Mifflin, Perry, Potter, Snyder, Sullivan, Tioga, Union, Venango, Warren, and Westmoreland counties.
Appalachian Regional
Jennifer Tenney
Program Director/Community Work Incentive Coordinator
304-293-4692
jtenney@hsc.wvu.edu
Beaver, Fayette, Greene, Lawrence, Mercer, Somerset, and Washington counties.
Disability Rights Pennsylvania (DRP)
Phyllis Hilley
Program Director/Community Work Incentive Coordinator
215-238-8070, ext. 309
philley@disabilityrightspa.org
Berks, Bucks, Carbon, Columbia, Lackawanna, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Luzerne, Monroe, Montgomery, Montour, Northampton, Northumberland, Pike, Schuylkill, Susquehanna, Wayne, Wyoming, and York counties.
Full Circle Employment Solutions LLC
Ruchi Edwards
Program Director/Community Work Incentive Coordinator
888-466-2942, ext. 20
ruchi.edwards@fullcircledc.com
Philadelphia, Delaware, and Chester counties.
CAP is an advocacy program for people with disabilities that offers help to people seeking services from the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, Blindness and Visual Services, Centers for Independent Living and other programs funded under federal law. CAP help is provided at no charge, regardless of income. | 888-745-2357 | equalemployment.org
Compass is an online portal that allows Pennsylvanians to check eligibility for many government programs and learn more about specific benefits. There is also a mobile app. | 800-692-7462 | compass.state.pa.us
CrossState Credit Union Association provides support for financial education initiatives throughout the commonwealth including funding for special projects and support for credit union sponsored Financial Reality Fairs held in conjunction with local schools. | 800-932-0661 or
717-234-3156 | crossstate.org
DRP helps children and adults with disabilities access special education services, obtain needed health and mental health care, gain access to employment and housing. DRP also intervenes to stop abuse, neglect, and rights violations of Pennsylvanians with disabilities. | 800-692-7443 | disabilityrightspa.org
The Pennsylvania ABLE Savings Program (PA ABLE) is a state-offered program that gives individuals with qualifying disabilities a tax-advantaged way to save or invest without impacting their government benefits. | 855-829-2253 | paable.gov
PATF is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping people with information and access to the assistive technology that improves the quality of their lives. | 484-674-0506 | www.patf.us
In addition to regulating the state’s financial institutions, this state agency offers information and workshops on a variety of financial topics. | 800-600-0007 or 717-781-1854 | dobs.pa.gov
This state agency manages the community services programs for people with disabilities including Pennsylvania’s Home and Community-based Services waiver programs. | 800-692-7462 | dhs.pa.gov
PHLP provides free legal advocacy to low-income consumers, older Pennsylvanians, and individuals with disabilities so they can get the health care, including waiver services, they need. | 800-274-3258 | phlp.org
PHFA helps people with disabilities locate and finance accessible housing. | 717-780-3800 | phfa.org
This state agency provides information about insurance to consumers and offers in-class presentations to Pennsylvania schools on insurance-related topics. | 877-881-6388 | insurance.pa.gov
This state assistive technology (AT) program offers programs including AT demonstrations, equipment reuse, an equipment lending library, free phones for eligible participants, and information about AT. | 800-204-7428 (7428) or 215-204-1356 | techowlpa.org
Cases of identity theft should be reported to this federal agency. They also provide numerous consumer education resources covering a range of financial topics. | ftc.gov
This government agency oversees the Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), and Plan to Achieve Self-Support (PASS) programs. |
800-772-1213 | ssa.gov
The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia offers lesson plans, teacher training, and other resources to educators wishing to provide financial and economic education to their students. | philadelphiafed.org/education
Junior Achievement offers a wide variety of financial education programs throughout the state through regional offices. | juniorachievement.org/web/ja-usa/near-you
A cooperative effort of the Pennsylvania Department of Education and Penn State University, the Making Cents Project offers free online professional development programs, electronic newsletters, curriculum consultation, and model financial education curriculum for PK-12 in Pennsylvania. | makingcentspa.org
The Pennsylvania Jump$tart Coalition is a group of over 40 organizations in Pennsylvania that are committed to improving financial literacy for young people across Pennsylvania. | pajumpstart.org
CFPB provides a variety of financial education resources for youth and adults. | consumerfinance.gov
This national non-profit organization provides national standards for financial literacy, offers lesson plans and resources for teaching personal finance, and hosts an annual conference for educators. | councilforeconed.org
The FDIC offers its free Money Smart financial education curriculum for youth and adults. There are both instructor-led and computer-based versions of the program for various age levels. | fdic.gov/consumers/consumer/moneysmart
All of the online financial and economic education resources available through the Federal Reserve system can be located through one portal. | federalreserveeducation.org
The coalition offers national standards in K-12 personal finance education, a searchable clearinghouse of financial education materials, and an annual teacher conference. | jumpstart.org
Vanguard provides My Classroom Economy as a way to turn any class into an opportunity to teach personal finance by implementing a system in which students earn “dollars” for performing classroom jobs. This income is then used to rent their own desks and more. | myclassroomeconomy.org
A national non-profit organization focused on financial education, NEFE recently shifted its priorities to focus on research and supporting the financial education community. They hold policy convenings, support financial education evaluation, and have developed a personal finance ecosystem model. | hsfpp.org
Next Gen Personal Finance offers financial education lessons and activities for high school educators as well as teacher professional development and an online professional learning community. | nextgenpersonalfinance.org
Visa’s Practical Money Skills for Life program offers lesson plans and other financial education resources including online games including Financial Football for use in the classroom. The Practical Money Skills for Life site is one of the few that offers lesson plans designed specifically for students with special needs. | practicalmoneyskills.com
Take Charge Today is a free financial education curriculum for middle and high school-age students with a decision-based approach to personal finance. | takechargetoday.arizona.edu
Banzai exposes students to real-life adult financial dilemmas from taming a budget and paying auto insurance to navigating taxes. | teachbanzai.com
A resource sponsored by Bank of America. There are ten modules that include articles, videos, and quizzes on different financial education topics. | bettermoneyhabits.bankofamerica.com
Through a free, ten-week budgeting simulation students experience the financial life of a recent college graduate. | hrblock.budgetchallenge.com
Provided by PwC Charitable Foundation, Earn Your Future is a set of 22 self-paced student financial modules spread across three grade levels (3-5, 6-8, and 9-12). Each is accompanied by a module resource guide that helps teachers use the program in a variety of instructional settings. | app.pwcfdnearnyourfuture.org
EverFi provides online financial education programs at three levels: Vault (grades 4-6), FutureSmart (grades 6-8), and EverFi Financial Literacy (grades (9-12). | everfi.com/k-12
A cooperative program from Discover and Discovery Education, this program provides a variety of online financial education resources, including self-paced modules for high school students, classroom activities for middle and high school students, and videos for middle school students and teachers. | pathwayinschools.com
