Recently, on my ACT test essay, I had to form an opinion about budgeting classes in high school. I think we need them. According to Pamela Erwin, president of Wells Fargo Foundation in California, 45 percent of college students are in credit card debt, with an average debt of more than $3,000.

Statistics like these show high school students need to participate in money management training. Pillager High School students held our “Reality Store,” which is a one day activity where students had to balance checkbooks and pay bills in a fictional life. These are skills that will be used later in life. By participating in this activity, I realized that I am under prepared to go out on my own yet, and several of my classmates feel the same way.

In order to change this, all high school students should take a class to learn how to do everyday things such as, paying bills and balancing check books, in order to reduce credit card debt. By taking a class in high school, students would be better educated in the area of fiscal responsibility. This will help students determine the way they are spending their money and how they can deter from credit card debt in college.
Emily Doss, junior PHS
Pillager, Minn.