Local bank initiates fifth year of Junior Achievement in local schools
March 30, 2023
Clinton, IL, March 30, 2023 - First National Bank and Trust Company initiated its fifth year facilitating Junior Achievement (JA) at six elementary schools and one middle school in DeWitt and Piatt counties with over 68 classrooms in grades K-8. Schools involved include Clinton Elementary, Douglas & Lincoln Schools, Schneider Elementary in Farmer City, Maroa-Forsyth Grade School, DeLand-Weldon Elementary and Blue Ridge Intermediate/Junior High School.
Junior Achievement is the world's largest organization dedicated to educating students in grades K-12 about entrepreneurship, work readiness and financial literacy through experiential, hands-on programs. First National Bank and Trust Company employees including Connie Unruh, Danielle Decker, Sabrina Brough and Sierra Weikle will conclude their assigned volunteer classroom sessions this May.
In addition, middle school students at The Vault, a teen center located in Clinton, also participated in JA Biz Town last semester which combined the in-class learning with simulated situations. This even included a bake sale and bazaar the students helped organize and lead.
Junior Achievement teaches students financial literacy principles and equips them with the knowledge and skills to make better life choices. Students are encouraged to think practically about starting a business with entrepreneurial thinking to meet the requirements of a demanding and ever-changing workforce. The students learn new vocabulary words, engage in hands on activities and games and discuss local businesses and entrepreneurs.
“I love teaching Junior Achievement. The curriculum provides an interactive way to teach students critical financial literacy skills, and I am so honored to have the opportunity to impact so many students,” said Connie Unruh, First National Bank and Trust Company financial literacy coordinator. “The JA program introduces concepts of how people earn, save and share money as well as how to one day start a business. The students are really engaged with the curriculum and love the hands-on lessons.”
The JA program gives teachers an opportunity to take advantage of third-party resources to offer different perspectives to their students. Junior Achievement is an effective and engaging curriculum to teach students and achieves financial and economic literacy standards in the state of Illinois.
About First National Bank and Trust Company: First National Bank and Trust Company is a community bank located in Clinton, Illinois as well as Arcadia, Whitehall and Independence, Wisconsin. Dedicated to community prosperity, the First National Bank and Trust Company was chartered in 1872 under the name DeWitt County National Bank and became part of the TS Banking Group in 2017. With $400 million in assets, First National Bank and Trust Company is dedicated to community reinvestment and gives 10% of its net income back to the community. For more information, visit firstnbtc.com.
About Junior Achievement: Junior Achievement is the world's largest organization dedicated to educating students in grades K-12 about entrepreneurship, work readiness and financial literacy through experiential, hands-on programs. JA inspires and prepares young people to succeed in a global economy and learn about their community, jobs and entrepreneurship with hands-on programs, knowledge and skills to make better life choices. For more information, visit ja.org.