Quotes

• In her nationally syndicated Color of Money Column in The Washington Post, Michelle Singletary said, "Look, if you are responsible for the education of high school or college students and you care about the way credit card debt and consumerism could affect their financial future, contact CARE." 
  
  
• Dr. Manning lauds the CARE program and explains, “Judge Ninfo and his colleagues are providing a crucially important service in their campaign to actively combat the spiraling problem of consumer debt. This mounting societal crisis requires a comprehensive financial literacy and education program that promotes personal responsibility and behavioral change – an educational initiative that is noticeably absent at both state and national levels. By introducing the CARE program in local high schools and colleges, it offers a practical roadmap for unwary students who too quickly succumb to the temptations of easy credit during their more formative years. By discussing the “real world” consequences of consumer debt and offering guidance for developing personal finance skills, Judge Ninfo and the CARE program can and will effect behavioral change when it is most important – before young people confront the possibility of filing for personal bankruptcy.”
  
  Dr. Robert D. Manning
  Caroline Werner Gannett
  Professor of the Humanities
  Rochester Institute of Technology
  Author - Credit Card Nation and Give Yourself Credit
  
  
• I estimate that between 7 and 10 percent of college students will drop out of school because of credit problems.  By introducing the CARE Program in local high schools and colleges, it offers a practical roadmap for unwary students who too quickly succumb to the temptations of easy credit during their most formative years.

             Dr. Robert D. Manning, Professor of the Humanities at RIT

• I recently saw a report on your program on Tampa Bay News Channel 8. As a former college student who found myself in $10,000 in debt I think that your program is phenomenal. I wish that I had been exposed to the traps of credit cards before having to learn the hard way. Unfortunately this debt caused me to drop out of school and almost 5 years later I am just barely returning to school. I am glad to see that you have also formed a group that involves Fraternities & Sororities. As a member of a sorority myself I know what a great forum that provides for information on topics such as this. I was also surprised to see after viewing your website that you have visited my old campus.
  
  I really just wanted to send an email letting you know what a wonderful organization you have created. These are the fundamentals that our high school and college students need to learn!!! Great job!
  
  Sincerely,
  Felina
  
  
• Teaching young people how to manage their personal finances is critical to the development of money management skills that will enable them to succeed in adult life. I commend Judge Ninfo for his leadership in volunteering to help young people learn these essential skills – an important step toward reducing future consumer bankruptcies. Our Assistant U.S. Trustee in Rochester, Kathleen Schmitt, participates in the CARE Program by speaking with young people about bankruptcy and personal money management. It’s clear from Kathy that these presentations are eye-openers for many of her young listeners, and for some of their parents and teachers as well.
  
  Lawrence A. Friedman, Director
  United States Department of Justice
  Executive Office for United States Trustees
  
  
• I have been in the lending business since 1986 and it still amazes me how uninformed people are with respect to how damaging credit card debt can be financially, physically and mentally. You are probably in agreement with financially but asking yourself physically, mentally? Yes. Unfortunately, I have encountered people that have so much debt; the stress of that debt has negatively impacted their health to the point of heart attacks and other physical ailments. Others have become diagnosed with clinical depression, been involved in felonious crimes, and many relationships have ended up in divorce. For what? To buy “stuff” that people can’t afford and probably will forget about within a short time after they buy it.
  
  In my humble opinion, people fall into this trap because of a lack of financial literacy and education. Schools are great at teaching many topics, but what about the basics needed to survive in our society such as the differences between wants and needs. (Yes, there is a difference) Judge Ninfo’s program cuts to the chase and is aimed at trying to educate people on the perils and pitfalls of credit card debt before they end up in his bankruptcy court.
  
  Judge Ninfo is kind enough to speak at several financing courses that I teach and after each class, countless people come up to me and tell me that they wished he spoke to them earlier in their lives and are overjoyed that he has developed the C.A.R.E. program and he and the bankruptcy attorneys in the program are taking the time out of their busy schedules to speak with younger people.
  
  I wholeheartedly endorse the C.A.R.E. program and encourage people to “get the word out” that such a program exists. I guarantee people will think twice before charging something on their credit card that they can’t fully pay off when the bill arrives. Perhaps then, people will get the message and the average American’s credit card debt of $8,400 will decrease. Thank you Judge Ninfo for the C.A.R.E. program.
  
  Jay W. Gelb, CMB
  Vice President
  Rochester Home Equity, Inc.
  Rochester, N.Y.
  
  
• The Investor Education Program in Indiana has been running for just over a year now, and we are constantly looking for positive avenues to get important financial literacy and fraud avoidance messages into public awareness. While I have run across several good programs that target grade school and middle school ages, I had yet to see a program that focused on high school (aside from the typical semester of economics that they take); so, I was really excited to come across this program. Since economics programs typically try to cover everything, the issue of the consequences of debt hardly gets enough attention, and it is being marketed so frequently now to younger generations that it is really a must to equip them with the proper knowledge to use credit wisely. It’s great to find a program that focuses on just that. The information on your web site is fantastic, and I will definitely be sharing it with others!
  
  Stephanie L. Beck
  Investor Education Coordinator
  Office of the Indiana Secretary of State