June 17, 2011
1. Our organization operates, organizes, sponsors, promotes and hosts investor education programs.
We have four main investor education programs:
a. Money Matters: Brings an interactive stock market game into the classroom along with discussions on credit and fraud. Each session varies based on the length of class time. The goal of Money Matters is to educate students about the financial world, understand its relevance in their every day life and encourage careful participation.
b. Seniors Against Investment Fraud: brings agency officials into senior centers and events to discuss types of investment scams, recruit "SAIF volunteers" and distribute quarterly newsletters. Times vary. This program encourages seniors to remain vigilant and to be unafraid when considering approaching securities and other law enforcement officials when victimization occurs.
c. Finance University: offers investor education along with other personal finance instruction to state educators. This is an annual event that is used to help teachers attain a credential in Personal Finance Instruction through the state department of education. Finance University is a week-long program and involves various other partners. The objectives include the creation of a lesson plan that adds personal finance topics into core curriculum instruction. Pre-tests and post-tests are administered.
d. Internet Safety and Scams: This presentation covers an array of internet hazards including online fraud tactics.
2. Investor education is not effective unless the receiver believes that they will truly benefit by participating. This means that the language used must be on an appropriate level of understanding, that nothing is being "sold," and that the presentation or material being offered contains the required tools to make better decisions for themselves and those that depend on them.
3. Anything with verifiable research. The recent FINRA survey on typical scam victims is one that stands out. I would spend more time utilizing academic research on effective financial campaigns.
4. No.
5. Finance University was modeled after the Wisconsin teacher training and SAIF was developed by the California Department of Corporations (Securities Commission).
6. I believe that a study of the applications of sociology and communication theory on successful or harmful investing behavior would generate a great deal of information about how to produce a more effective investor education campaign.
7. State government