San Ramon Students Create Personal Finance Education Initiative

SAN RAMON, CA — Two Dougherty Valley High School students founded a program to teach personal finance skills to a total of 500 students in more than 20 classes in San Ramon.

Ishaan Savla and Arnav Desai founded Finpowrd to help teach the personal finance skills they felt they weren't taught themselves and to help build on existing skills.

“We recognized that existing initiatives have made clear the importance of financial literacy; we want to make clear its classroom feasibility when approached with a skill-based lens (hence, we say “personal finance”) rather than as additional curricula,” Savla, who holds a student seat on the Contra Costa County Office of Education, told Patch in an email. “Finpowrd runs hands-on, curriculum-aligned workshops that reinforce and build on what students are already learning in school.”

Savla and Dasai ran classes for 5th and 8th graders at three elementary and middle schools on topics like investing, credit scores, credit worthiness, and compounding interest. They then created tailored activities based on what students are already learning.

At Windemere Ranch Middle School, students put together a budgeting spreadsheet. At Bella Vista Elementary School, students learned how long it takes for principal to double at different interest rates.

They're now looking to create curricula more targeted to different grade levels building on their experiences. "The most rewarding part of Finpowrd has been teaching students who remind us of our younger selves—their energy and curiosity are what motivate us," Savla said.

To learn more, visit finpowrd.com or follow @finpowrd on Instagram.