California to add personal finance grad requirements

www.acsa.org

July 22, 2024

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond today celebrated the passage of Assembly Bill 2927 (McCarty) through the California State Senate, which would make California the 26th state in the union to require personal finance as a high school graduation requirement. The bill was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom on June 29.

This victory marks the culmination of a two-year effort by Thurmond to bring personal finance education to all students across the state of California. Thurmond has led a coalition of voices — including students, families, educators, experts, and policymakers — who have elevated financial education as a key issue of economic justice.

In 2022, Thurmond announced $3.6 billion in state funding and $1.4 million in free access to professional development to support the training of teachers in personal finance instruction. He also announced the recruitment of a Finance Education Task Force during a Personal Finance Summit held at the California Department of Education earlier this year.

AB 2927, sponsored by Thurmond, will add the completion of a one-semester course in personal finance to California’s high school graduation requirements commencing with pupils graduating in the 2030–31 school year.

“Our young people need and deserve a clear understanding of personal finance so that they can make educated financial choices and build stable, successful futures for themselves and their future families,” Thurmond said, in a news release. “By adding personal finance to our high school graduation requirements, we acknowledge that managing household finances and building financial stability are essential life skills.

“Every child should have the opportunity to build these essential skills before navigating adult financial choices, not just those who happen to have the opportunity to learn these concepts at home or through an elective.”

The bill will require local educational agencies to offer a stand-alone, one-semester course in personal finance at every high school starting in the 2027–28 school year. The content and structure of this requirement will be guided by the expertise of classroom teachers through a process that will involve the Instructional Quality Commission and that will be led by Thurmond and the CDE. LEAs will also be authorized to require a full-year course in personal finance rather than a one-semester course.

According to Next Gen Personal Finance, 25 other states currently require at least one semester of instruction in personal finance. The increasing inclusion of personal finance as an educational requirement comes at a time when the class identities of Americans have struggled to rebound since the Great Recession, according to Gallup’s annual Economy and Personal Finance poll.

Personal finance education emphasizes a strong understanding of money management concepts that allow individuals to manage income and assets to build personal financial stability and intergenerational wealth.

For more information about California’s existing high school graduation requirements and course offerings, visit the CDE High School web page, www.cde.ca.gov/ci/gs/hs.