Lawyers, Judge teach high school students financial responsibility

March 3, 2008

Three local bankruptcy lawyers and a bankruptcy judge visited Mountain Pointe High School economics teacher David Nach’s class Friday morning to teach students how to be responsible with credit cards before it’s too late.

Attorneys Carolyn Johnsen, Cary Forrester and Marcia Bushing joined Judge George Nielsen to present their program C.A.R.E. (Credit Abuse Resistance Education) to about 20 high school juniors and seniors. The program, originally created by bankruptcy Judge John C. Ninfo II in New York, is now in 47 states and taught by local attorneys and judges who volunteer their time.

The program involves a 60- to 90-minute PowerPoint presentation and covers various topics including how credit cards work, what good credit means, budgeting, interest rates and saving.

“We also try to throw in stories from clients that the kids will be familiar with,” Johnsen said.

The presenters began by showing a video of a Saturday Night Live skit called “Don’t Buy Stuff You Cannot Afford.” Afterwards, Nielsen talked about making money-smart decisions, wants versus needs and late fees.

“A wonderful way to handle our finances is to know the differences between wants and needs,” Nielsen said to the class. “If you must charge something, charge needs. None of this is rocket science, just things we need to keep in mind as we make our financial decisions.

Mountain Pointe senior Alexandra Lightfoot, 18, admitted she recently let her spending get out of control.

“I have a debit card and I have like $6 on it right now because I wasn’t paying attention and I was spending money I didn’t have,” Lightfoot said. “But I learned my lesson and I’m not doing that anymore.”

Lightfoot was also surprised about what Forrester told the class about interest rates.

“Credit card companies are the richest companies in the world,” Forrester said. “They are the one company that can change their contract, but if you pay on time the interest rate doesn’t matter.”

Mountain Pointe senior Alex Gomez, 17, was also surprised by Forrester’s lecture.

“I didn’t know that they can change the contract and not even the best can decipher what (the contracts) mean,” Gomez, who works at Kyrene Kids Club, said after Forrester held up his own double-sided contract covered in microscopic print.

Bushing showed students a sample budget comparable to a recent college graduate making $1,600 a month. She also told students about Pete, a young client of hers who struggled with student loans and managing a budget, and Kathy, a 50-year-old divorced woman who let depression lead her into debt.

"The take-away I want to give you is spend little, save a lot,” Bushing said.

Johnsen, Forrester, Bushing and Nielson have been doing C.A.R.E. for about three years in Arizona, and have been presenting to Nach’s students each semester for two years.

“I was contacted by Mrs. Johnsen, who said she has this program that targets high school students, and since it fits my curriculum I’ve been having them ever since,” Nach said.

For more information, visit www.careprogram.us.

Corinne Frayer can be reached at (480) 898-7917 or cfrayer@ahwatukee.com.