In a recent early morning finance class at Baldwin High School, business teacher Gregg Kelley asked students to name the biggest expected expenses of their lifetime.
Students chimed in: A vehicle. A house. College.
For many, Kelley explained to the class, the deciding factor in affording such big ticket items will often come down to whether any earnings were put away. He described stashing $50 from his paychecks into a college fund for his daughter, 17, that’s grown to cover state tuition and boarding. He spoke about how she saved enough money from a job she started two years ago to buy a used car, and how a reserve fund recently allowed him to pay for a new refrigerator after the old one broke down.
“When you guys have jobs, do not just take your money and just put it out and make your purchases. … Put something aside,” he told the class.
WHAT NEWSDAY FOUND
- Financial education is being taught to students in grades 5-12 as part of a recently implemented state requirement. Children in lower grades will learn about the topic beginning in the 2027-28 school year.
- The instruction comes at a time of decreasing financial literacy among adults, according to one survey, and could help students navigate the challenges of learning to manage money, build wealth and deal with debt.
- Schools are rolling out new finance courses or integrating the material into existing subjects.
Kelley’s lesson was part of the school’s new Advanced Placement business principles and personal finance class, launched in response to a new state mandate that requires students in grades 5-12 to learn about finance in areas such as budgeting, money management, credit, debt management and investing. Instruction for students in K-4 is not required until 2027-28.
The mandate is part of the state’s push to reform high school graduation standards under the new Portrait of a Graduate initiative, which involves phasing out traditional Regents exams and offering other pathways for students to show competency.
Education experts said learning about finance is increasingly important in a modern economy with high living costs — particularly because studies show many adults lack the knowledge necessary to navigate the financial landscape.
According to the 2026 TIAA Institute-Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center Personal Finance Index, financial literacy has declined since the annual survey began tracking the data 10 years ago. And Gen Z is the most challenged in this area, with only 38% of respondents in that age bracket answering index questions correctly, the survey found.
Teaching skills at an early age can help students make informed decisions about creating financial goals, building assets, avoiding debt and creating emergency funds. It also helps create lasting security, experts said.
From ‘coin math’ to emergency planning
While many schools on Long Island already offered some form of financial literacy education, they have now aligned their curricula with state guidelines, either by offering more stand-alone finance courses or weaving the instruction into existing courses.
The Wheatley School, East Williston’s high school for grades 8-12, is offering a new career and financial management course, while also covering required topics in other classes like social studies, science and math.
“These new requirements should help students better understand the world they live in, and fortunately, our teachers are very well prepared to provide students with the opportunities to meet … these requirements,” the school’s principal, Wayne Jensen, said in a statement.
In Huntington, schools Superintendent Beth McCoy said in an email that teachers in her district have “infuse[d] units into our current coursework.” McCoy said she hopes to help students “make good decisions in the future and develop sound financial practices in their adult lives.”
Amy Pacifico, the Middle Country school district’s director of world studies, and Ryan Milano, director of mathematics and accountability and district department director, said in an email that younger students practice “coin math” and basic addition by role-playing purchases. Students in the upper grades plan for financial emergencies and long-term investments. Among the options in high school, seniors can elect to take an course in personal finance and real-world math skills, the educators said.
The Miller Place school district introduced a new finance course this year, and finance topics are incorporated into several other classes. At North Country Road Middle School, financial literacy is addressed in family and consumer sciences and computer literacy. The district also enacted the Nassau BOCES’ new personal finance curriculum for grades six to eight. At the elementary level, personal finance is mostly taught in social studies and math courses.
“Financial literacy is an essential life skill, and our responsibility as educators is to make sure students understand how the mathematics they learn in the classroom connects to the financial decisions they will make every day,” Superintendent Marc Ferris said in a statement.
Preparing students for their ‘financial future’
At Baldwin High School, Kelley told Newsday, he’s been advocating for finance to be taught for younger children and was encouraged to see the New York State Board of Regents approve the mandate in March.
“I want to be able to help the youth of America make better financial decisions so, when they get out of this place, that they’re prepared for the financial future,” Kelley said. “We have an opportunity to expose them to things and help prepare them to make better financial decisions, and that’s my ultimate goal.”
Students’ first experiences with finance often begin at home, where they watch parents and caregivers make daily decisions about what to spend on necessities like food, clothing and health. Kelley said he finds there is a wide gap in what students may know about money, with some showing little familiarity while others are already investing in stocks and cryptocurrency. But he said the goal is to have everyone walk away with real-world knowledge.
Baldwin High School teacher Gregg Kelley, above, has advocated for students to learn about personal finance. Credit: Dawn McCormick
Felicia Thomas-Williams, a retired Long Island educator and the Island’s representative on the Regents board, said in an emailed statement, “When students understand how money works, they are better positioned to make thoughtful choices, avoid costly financial mistakes, pursue educational and career opportunities, and build greater financial security for themselves and their families.”
She added that the instructional requirement can also help ensure every student has equal access to information about how financial decisions are made, including for building generational wealth, because not every student gets that guidance at home.
“Our public education system has an important role to play in helping ensure that a young person’s opportunity to develop financial knowledge is not determined by their ZIP code or their family’s financial circumstances,” she said.
Several Baldwin High School students told Newsday these classes are an important first step toward learning about the practicalities of finance and navigating the world outside school.
Senior Sophia Kaur, 17, said the course will help prepare her for her later studies, as she hopes to pursue an MBA.
“I’m excited to learn how we can manage our finances and how it’s better to start now than to start later. I want to learn more about budgeting and investments,” Kaur said. She said her father has a business mindset and has been pushing positive habits. “He always says that we should always have a backup plan of a backup plan,” she said. Kaur said information about money can help people avoid decisions that result in financial ruin.
Alexys Bordon, 17, is enrolled in a virtual enterprise class where students create and operate mock companies.
“I hope to get a lot of knowledge on how to properly manage a business and how to come up with the concept of creating a business,” the senior said.
Damian Maharaj, 17, also a senior, said he believes every student should learn about money to avoid accruing debt.
“Many people, they don’t know how to manage their money, and they don’t know how to save properly, and that could end up costing them a lot. … Teaching people about financial literacy is very important, and it might make it better for everybody,” Maharaj said.
He feels learning about finance this year can benefit him on his road toward entrepreneurship.
“In the future, I’m thinking about starting a business, and I just want to know about managing my money better,” Maharaj said.
Baldwin High School student Damian Maharaj hopes to one day start a business. Credit: Dawn McCormick
Anthony Mignella, the Baldwin superintendent, said in a statement the district has had “financial literacy embedded at multiple grade levels, and we are now reviewing and expanding those experiences to ensure they are fully aligned with New York State’s new expectations.” He pointed to the high school’s Global Business & Entrepreneurship Academy, where students learn about finance within the broader economy. The district also offers a dual enrollment college economics course for seniors.
“Our ultimate measure of success is not whether students can pass a test on financial vocabulary,” Mignella said in a statement. “It is whether they leave Baldwin with the confidence, knowledge, and skills to manage their money, ask the right questions, recognize potential financial pitfalls, and make sound financial decisions throughout their lives.”
Lorena Mongelli has been reporting for Newsday since 2021. Prior to that, she covered breaking news at the New York Post.
