MIAMI (WSVN) - High schoolers in Miami-Dade County are getting a unique opportunity to dive into finance and banking, paving the way for financial confidence as they approach adulthood.
Edison Senior High School in Miami hosted a celebratory event on Wednesday, marking the launch of a transformative program. The Educational Federal Credit Union, affectionately known as EdFed, is taking financial education directly to 12 Miami-Dade school campuses through its innovative mobile branch.
This mobile branch operates like a traditional bank, offering students, EdFed members, Miami-Dade County Schools employees, and Miami-Dade College students the ability to conduct transactions, withdrawals, and deposits right on campus.
Dr. Jose Dotres, the Superintendent of Miami-Dade Schools, expressed his support, drawing on his own experience starting a career in banking after high school.
“I started when I graduated from high school, what did I do? My first job was at a bank,” he said. “We always have to strive to provide opportunities to lift the student experience and this is precisely what it’s doing.”
EdFed’s mobile branch, a brainchild of Yolette Mezadieu, allows students to gain real-life experience by actively participating in banking operations. Finance professionals oversee transactions, creating a dynamic learning environment.
“The students are the ones doing all the transactions and the adults are the ones overseeing it,” said Mezadieu. “So if I wanted to make a deposit, they would do my transaction, they take my ID, put my money in the account.”
Students like Kaniya Brown are enthusiastic about the program.
“Students are able to get it easier, get it faster, instead of having to figure out how we’re going to get the transportation to the bank,” she remarked. “Instead, they made a way for us.”
Beyond facilitating personal banking, EdFed plans to provide financial literacy workshops and mentoring opportunities directly within schools.
For Brown, the program is not just about transactions; it’s about empowering the upcoming adults with essential financial knowledge.
“We’re the upcoming adults now,” said Brown. “We’re gonna be the new adults and I hope that what I’m doing would have a positive effect on other students so that they could come and join me. I’m hoping I get more students in.”
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