Florence County Library System pursued a multigenerational financial literacy strategy in partnership with the South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs and others. The project reached children, teens/young adults, seniors, and low- to moderate-income residents to help them become financially savvy and alert them to money scams.
Key Activities:
• Established partnerships with the South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs, the Florence chapter of AARP, Francis Marion University, and the Poyner Adult and Community Education Center to undertake financial literacy programming and promotions.
• Formed an alliance with the Benefit Bank of South Carolina, a counseling service that coordinates delivery of public assistance programs to residents in need. The Benefit Bank integrated library programming into its client services.
• Conducted a “Dewey Dollars” program whereby children received scrip redeemable for incentives when they checked out relevant materials and completed surveys describing what they learned about money. The Dewey Dollars proved highly popular with children, who arrived at the library asking specifically for Dewey Dollar–eligible titles.
• Conducted a financial literacy festival, with intergenerational programs and performances for thousands residents.
• Conducted a six-part “Take Control of Your Money” workshop series (also available in webinar format) on budgeting, credit, and debt reduction for low- and moderate-income participants, with instruction provided by faculty from Francis Marion University.
• Conducted money sessions for children, emphasizing the importance of saving and using money wisely. The sessions were differentiated by grade level and occurred throughout the county.
• Hosted a “Money Madness” event for teens on financial fundamentals with assistance from the South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs. The program was modeled on the LifeSmarts challenge for middle and high school students.
• Conducted workshops for senior citizens in partnership with Francis Marion University and the local AARP chapter on topics related to financial fraud and retirement planning.
• With the the South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs, signed up library patrons for electronic financial fraud alerts.
