In 2023, the Nation’s Report Card on Financial Literacy gave D.C. an “F,” placing it in the bottom 20% of states in the U.S. for financial education.
But a new program from a D.C. nonprofit is aiming to boost financial literacy among the city’s youth — one kid, and one dollar saved, at a time.
It’s called the Young Adult Financial Empowerment Program, offered through a nonprofit called Tzedek DC. Its founders say they’re placing special emphasis on residents in Wards 7 and 8.
“We first start off just trying to get you to understand a budget or a spending plan,” said Stephen Jefferson, Community Outreach Organizer for the nonprofit Tzedek DC. “Then,” he added, “we have financial counselors that can work with you on the side to help put your goals into play.”
Jefferson told WTOP that back when he went to public school in D.C., he had a small financial literacy component, called a lifestyle course, as part of his curriculum.
“It was mandatory that you take this course,” he said. “We learned how to balance a checkbook.”
Jefferson says part of the problem in 2024 is: “Sad to say, they took it out of D.C. public schools, so the generation you’re dealing with now … it’s rough, because they really didn’t have any education about finances, period.”
That’s where he and founder/president Ariel Levinson-Waldman say Tzedek DC comes into play. Their mission is to provide education and resources for D.C.’s youth, particularly in underprivileged communities of color, whom Levinson-Waldman and Jefferson say are at a disadvantage due to educational and racial inequities.
“Tzedek is a word from the Bible that means justice,” Levinson-Waldman told WTOP. “We are seeking justice, in the broadest possible sense — through the legal system, and especially the financial system in this case — for D.C.’s youth.”
On the whole, Tzedek DC is a nonprofit that helps residents in three main ways: legal and financial counseling, working with local lawmakers to help in policy-setting and community outreach education. The Young Adult Financial Empowerment Program is a cornerstone of that last tenant.
Levinson-Waldman says the program has been around for twelve and a half months, but they’re really kicking things into high gear as they head into 2025. On Nov. 12, the program celebrated the graduation of its most recent youth cohort. The Young Adult Financial Empowerment Program places a special emphasis on youth in Wards 7 and 8.
“Participants get 16 hours of tool-building education,” Levinson-Waldman explained.
On top of that, they also get $100 wired into a savings account from funds the nonprofit has raised, and the cost of maintaining savings in that account covered for a period of time.
“Getting folks the opportunity to practice, and the resources to practice — to make a difference,” he said.
“Education is the key, and that’s what the program brings to the community,” Jefferson chimed in.
Levinson-Waldman says their data shows that they’re getting results.
“Upon completion, 98% say they’ve changed their financial habits as a result,” he told WTOP.
“Ninety-two percent say they’d recommend the course to friends and family, and 60% say they’ve increased their savings and confidence in investing. The idea that folks of color are now saying: ‘I now believe that investment and savings is something for me — and people like me …’ That’s a game-changer.”
One of the program’s graduates that is a shining example of that is Lashawn Starkes.
“Just the amount of information that was given to us — it felt like a full-on college course,” she told WTOP.
Since graduating, Starkes started her own business and is thriving in the D.C. community as an entrepreneur. Her company, Asynchronous Reality Telecomme, helps others get their businesses off the ground via curated websites and other tools.
A big component of the services she offers to clients revolves around financial planning. She attributes her expertise to a little of her own self-motivated research, and the knowledge she gained from the Young Adult Financial Empowerment Program.
“You have the information about credit, and about savings, and about avoiding scams, so you can keep your money,” Starkes said.
Levinson-Waldman says Tzedek has big plans for at least eight new cohorts in the Young Adult Financial Empowerment Program in the coming year. He and Jefferson say they want more financial literacy taught in all corners of the District, especially in D.C. public schools.
Until then, he says they’re happy to pick up the slack and make a difference.
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