Farmers Bank empowers students

Farmers National Bank recently announced a new initiative to bring financial literacy education to high school students across the Mahoning Valley by providing them with access to the EverFiTM Financial Literacy Platform.

This web-based program uses the latest in new media technologies – video, animations, 3-D gaming, avatars and social networking – to bring complex financial concepts to life for today’s digital generation.

Through the Farmers National Bank Financial Scholars Program, students will become certified in more than 600 topics in financial education, allowing them to become more informed, responsible citizens. Farmers National Bank has committed to fully-fund the $120,000 program, bringing the interactive financial management program to these students at no cost to the schools.

The 10-unit course offers six hours of programming aimed at teaching, assessing and certifying students in a variety of financial topics including credit scores, insurance, credit cards, student loans, mortgages, taxes, stocks, savings, 401k’s and other critical concepts that map to national financial literacy standards.

The platform uniquely tracks the progress and score of every student and provides students who successfully complete the course with certification in financial literacy, a valuable mark of distinction on college applications and resumes.

“I have always taken a personal interest in financial literacy,” stated John S. Gulas, president and CEO of Farmers National Bank. “Upon assuming my role as CEO, I identified improving financial literacy as a corporate initiative. The program we are offering not only meets the Ohio Department of Education requirements, but gives students hands on experience with challenging financial situations all in a safe, virtual environment.”