Vermont may need some more educating when it comes to its finances.

The state scores very low on the Financial Literacy Report Card put out by the Champlain College Center for Financial Literacy. 

The report card gives the school systems of the state a D in financial literacy offerings throughout the grades K-12. The card also reports only 10 percent of Vermont High Schools require financial literacy with 30 percent not offering classes in financial literacy at all. 

The poor financial education in Vermont school’s shows in later life. According to the Corporation for Enterprise Development, 27 percent of Vermonters live in liquid asset poverty. This means that if a Vermonter were to loose their job or experience a major medical emergency, they would only have the basic expenses to cover their needs for three months. This along with 40 percent of Vermont have sub-prime credit scores, buts the state in a grave financial crisis. 

This is why financial experts Liz Scharf from Capstone Community Action and Forrest Gardner from Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity are giving advice to Vermonters on how to better manage their finances and help school districts make financial literacy a priority. 

They both advocate speaking out to local legislation and letting lawmakers as well as school administrators know that this is an issue that needs to be brought to a forefront in our community. 

So as you celebrate Financial Competency Month, Scharf and Gardner both encourage you to think about the things that could help lead Vermont to have better money handling habits.