Author: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Thursday, March 17, 2011

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Seventh- and eighth-graders visited the Reality Store, where "The Game of Life" offered up some striking realities about money management.

Young teens found a new appreciation for the value of a dollar – and their parents – after a stint in the Reality Store. That’s where “The Game of Life” revealed some striking realities of adulthood and illustrated how today’s academic performance is connected to tomorrow’s potential paycheck.

Beaumont seventh-grader Keriann Ferguson, who was a pediatrician for the day, realized how hard that people have to work for their families to live comfortably.

“Everything was more expensive than I expected, and it adds up really fast,” she said, noting, “You need to think about how much your parents are doing for you and that school is really important for your future.” 

Students were assigned jobs based on their GPA – classmate Timmy Michael was an airline pilot, for instance – and they priced everything from car insurance, rent and groceries to clothing and property taxes. The idea was to support a family by living within one’s means.

“Vacations seem easy, but it’s a whole lot more than I thought,” said Timmy, who downsized his home selection, too, after discovering the cost of child care.

During the four-day Reality Store, more than 300 volunteers helped some 1,700 students navigate their spending choices. Volunteers came from the ranks of parents, local professionals and other community supporters. Older peers offered a hand, too, including students from the EBCE (Experienced-Based Career Education) class at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School and the JROTC programs at Bryan Station and Henry Clay.

At the transportation booth

Knowing their monthly take-home pay, students pondered: Is a new sports car a possibility, or is the used minivan a better fit?

Jordan Parker, who works for Traditional Bank, staffed this booth one day alongside Beaumont PTA president Kathy Cartier. They tried to hit the high points of money management and sound financial decisions.

“We go over their income and try to steer them in the right direction,” Parker said.

At the supplemental income booth

With expenses outpacing income, some students realized they could not make ends meet.

“This is where they come to figure out whether they need a second job. I ask, ‘Are you living within your means? Are you spending too much?’ I get to challenge their thought process,” said Beaumont mom Shannon Buzard, who offered a sympathizing ear.

Another solution? Perhaps go back to school to advance in their career or change fields, especially if a job is unsatisfying.

At the health and beauty booth

As gasoline costs fluctuate erratically, students wondered: Are regular salon treatments necessary?

Linda Guerrier, a senior in Bryan Station’s JROTC unit, advised most kids to come back to her booth after they had prioritized and taken care of essentials.

“They’re mostly smart about the decisions they make,” she said during a lunch break.

Her main advice? Plan for the unexpected, and “just remember the most important things come first in life.”

The back story

Along with Beaumont, kids from Tates Creek, Morton, Jessie Clark and Edythe J. Hayes middle schools and students from Martin Luther King Jr. Academy, Lexington Day Treatment and the Family Care Center participated the week of March 14.

The annual Reality Store was coordinated by the Fayette County Cooperative Extension, in partnership with Commerce Lexington’s Business Education Network (B.E.N.) and Lex-Tran.

4-H agent Kevin Lindsay helped the schools’ Youth Services Center coordinators prepare their students as they completed self-assessments and covered financial goal-setting and decision-making in terms of wants vs. needs. The teachers planned to follow up after “The Game of Life” to reiterate how grades and personal dedication can affect college and career options.

“When you’re in the classroom, they don’t fully get it. But when they get to the Reality Store and start to see their money disappear, it starts to make a little more sense to them,” Lindsay said.

Resources

Fayette County Cooperative Extension, (859) 257-5582

Kevin Lindsay and Jennifer Boykin, county extension agents for 4-H youth development