{"id":22444,"date":"2013-02-28T16:50:23","date_gmt":"2013-02-28T16:50:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/newsroom\/dosomethingorg-and-hr-block-combine-humor-and-education-in-new-teen-focused-personal-finance-campaign\/"},"modified":"2023-03-02T12:46:30","modified_gmt":"2023-03-02T18:46:30","slug":"dollars-sense-personal-finance-campaign","status":"publish","type":"newsroom","link":"https:\/\/www.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/newsroom\/around-block\/our-purpose\/dollars-sense-personal-finance-campaign\/","title":{"rendered":"DoSomething.org and H&R Block Combine Humor and Education in New Teen-Focused Personal Finance Campaign"},"content":{"rendered":"

Billboard chart topper, Far East Movement, asks teens to share \u2018The Craziest Thing I Did To Save Money\u2019<\/h2>\n

The topic of teens and money is no laughing matter: only four states require at least a one-semester course in personal finance for high school graduation<\/span>[1]<\/a>, three in four students say they don\u2019t know enough about personal finance and the average student loan debt for new college graduates is nearly $27,000<\/span>[2]<\/a>. Inspired by studies that show increased engagement and retention in lessons that interject humor, a new campaign from <\/span>DoSomething.org<\/a> and <\/span>H&R Block Dollars & Sense relies on laughs to get teens talking about financial literacy.<\/span><\/p>\n

Kicking off Feb. 28, \u201cThe Craziest Thing I Did to Save Money\u201d encourages young people to share stories about the quirky and off-beat things they have done to save money, while receiving real-life advice about managing finances without going to such extremes. Teens can participate through a Facebook experience, text messaging game, humorous videos and opportunities to win more than $30,000 in scholarships.<\/p>\n

Downtown Los Angeles-based electro-pop group Far East Movement<\/a> lent its sense of humor to the campaign by participating in a public service announcement<\/a>. \u201cWe totally get the stress and frustration around dealing with money \u2013 or the lack of money \u2013 when you\u2019re in high school and college,\u201d said Far East Movement\u2019s Kev Nish. \u201cWe have some insane stories about what we did to save a buck, and we can\u2019t wait to hear stories from teens that have been in similar situations.\u201d The group recently released a new single, \u201cTurn up the Love.\u201d<\/p>\n

Several New York-based improvisational comedians also were enlisted to create video shorts touching on themes from cheap dates to spring break on a budget. The videos will be released weekly throughout the campaign, starting with a video about dating on a budget<\/a> being released today.<\/p>\n

\u201cResearch shows teens really do want to learn money management skills while they\u2019re young \u2013 they know it will help them avoid costly mistakes after graduation,\u201d said Susan Ehrlich, president of financial services for H&R Block, which provides financial education for teens through its H&R Block Dollars & Sense philanthropic program. \u201cThis campaign is a fun way to address the issue of personal finance and help teens make smart choices about money.\u201d<\/p>\n

From Feb. 28 through April 30, teens have the following opportunities to participate in The Craziest Thing I Did to Save Money and potentially win a scholarship:<\/p>\n