Summer Thoughts from Chris
You might think summer means slowing down, but here at CEE, we are as focused as ever on delivering our mission to help youth gain financial and economic knowledge for life.
We kicked off the summer with two amazing student competitions— the National Economics Challenge and the National Personal Finance Challenge. This August, the National Economics Competition goes international! Hundreds of high school students will gather in Hong Kong to learn economics, leadership, and experience the NEC Global Round Asia.
Up next is our virtual Summer Institute. Over three days in July, high school teachers will learn about student-centered strategies for teaching economics and personal finance. We are showcasing lessons focused on topics that matter to students—music, culture, technology, and real-world challenges—to make it easy for teachers to be impactful and engaging.
And just because it’s summer doesn’t mean we take our eyes off our goal to have financial education requirements in every state. We’re thrilled to celebrate Delaware’s recent win with HB 203. You can read more about our advocacy work in this report.
I thank you for being part of our community and hope you find the time this summer to engage in what is meaningful to you.
Chris Caltabiano Interim Chief Executive Officer & Chief Program Officer
National Personal Finance Challenge
What kind of credit card transaction charges you interest from day one?
That’s just one of the challenging questions tackled by high school students at this year’s National Personal Finance Challenge (NPFC).
This year, over 18,000 students participated nationwide with 30 teams from 28 states advancing to the final rounds. Six of the finalist teams came from CEE’s Access Zone program, which
supports financial education in Title I schools—underscoring our mission to ensure financial knowledge is for everyone.
Held at Voya Financial in Atlanta, the NPFC finals began with a financial planning case study and ended in a high-energy quiz bowl.
The Scripps Ranch High School team from San Diego emerged victorious, each student earning a $2,000 cash prize, along with their coach.
Other top finishers: Mount Hebron High School (MD) – 1st Runner-Up; Madeira High School (OH) – 2nd Runner-Up; Hunter High School (NY) – 3rd Runner-Up.
The NPFC would not have been possible without the support of our partners: Voya Financial, Walmart, and the Charles Schwab Foundation
National Economics Challenge
High school students from Mt. Hebron High School in Ellicott City, Maryland, captured first place in both the Adam Smith Division for advanced students and the David Ricardo Division for first-time competitors in our 2025 National Economics Challenge (NEC). This marks the eighth consecutive NEC where Mt. Hebron has been a finalist or champion.
16 state-winning teams competed in the national finals, demonstrating their grasp of complex economic principles—from international trade to consumer behavior. These students came from over 10,000 students nationwide who took the NEC first round online challenge. The finalist teams were welcomed by Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President and CEE Board Member, Raphael Bostic. Students competed in a critical thinking round where they addressed an economic issue and the top four teams advanced to the final quiz bowl round.
Other top finishers: Phillips Exeter Academy (NH), Lambert High School (GA), Carmel High School (IN), and Belen Jesuit Preparatory School (FL).
We thank Morgan Stanley for its support of the Challenge this year and CEE’s state-based affiliates for their work in advancing economic and personal finance education in the states.
We also thank Voya Financial for graciously hosting both the NEC and NPFC Finals and offer our special thanks to all the judges and volunteers.
Invest in Girls
Invest in Girls has had a busy semester, delivering financial knowledge and career exposure to girls in a variety of ways.
• IIG Online: 14 courses delivered so far this year (CFO, CIO, CEO)
• Through schools in New York and Massachusetts with inperson teen-friendly coursework led by IIG instructors
• Across America through CEE Affiliates. Active classes in over 10 states and activity across 20+
• Experiencing IIG’s Exploring Finance & Industry trips held in NYC and Boston
This summer, 14 IIG students are working at Brown Advisory in NYC, Boston, and Baltimore. With new program leadership in place, we are refreshing our Financial Foundations curriculum and will relaunch our year-long mentorship program this fall.
You can double your dollars with a matching gift We now accept cryptocurrency You can help support a teacher with a Conference Scholarship
To learn more, please contact Tarnisha Smart at tsmart@councilforeconed.org
Advocacy
This June, CEE’s Senior Advocacy Director, Leslie Finnan, testified in the Delaware Legislative Hall in favor of HB 203, “The Equity and Inclusion in Financial Literacy for All High School Students in Delaware Act.” We are happy to report that after unanimous votes in the House and Senate, the bill is now on its way to Governor Meyer’s desk. For the last two years, CEE has worked closely with Representative Hilovsky, the
In the States
REAL Econ for All 2025: Empowering Educators Through Economics
Economics Arkansas recently hosted its annual REAL Econ for All Conference in June, welcoming over 300 educators from across the state for three days of dynamic, standards-based professional development. The conference— short for Relevant, Engaging, Activity-based Learning—featured sessions on personal finance, entrepreneurship, economic decision-making, and engaging classroom simulations.
A standout moment was the Bacon + Eggonomics Breakfast, where Sheila Bair, former FDIC Chair and 2018 Council for Economic Education Visionary Awards Honoree, delivered an inspiring keynote, sharing insights from her distinguished career and her Money Tales children’s book series.
bill’s primary sponsor, to address concerns and questions and shore up support from education groups, business leaders, and private citizens throughout the state.
Because of this legislation, students graduating from Delaware public schools beginning in 2030 will be required to take one semester of personal finance. CEE, in collaboration with other members of our advocacy coalition, FinEd50, was instrumental in providing support in the passage of this legislation.
Delaware’s requirement brings the number of states requiring students to take personal finance to graduate to 38, with 25 of those states requiring a stand-alone course! Great progress has been made this year with passage of legislation in California, Colorado, Delaware, Kentucky, and Texas. Unfortunately, two of these states – California and Texas – have weakened existing economics requirements to make room for personal finance.
Educators earned up to 12 hours of professional development credit and left equipped with
practical tools and resources to bring economics to life in their classrooms.
Teacher Training and Resources
This has been an exciting semester for our teacher programs! We piloted our new full-semester personal finance course with over 30 teachers. These teachers taught their class with our new course, providing us with feedback along the way, and, in turn, we supported them with monthly expert-led peer groups and refresher webinars. This approach delivers on CEE’s commitment to teacher-tested, teacher-approved resources and
we are very excited to roll out our new course later this year!
Spring semester professional development highlights include:
• Over 400 attendees at CEE’s virtual Winter Institute
• The FinEd50 Educator Essentials Forum sponsored by Visa
• Training sessions at the NAEE Economic Conference and at Intuit’s virtual educator conference.
Supporter Spotlight: Voya Financial
100,000 students! That is how many young people CEE has been able to help learn personal finance through the National Personal Finance Challenge thanks to our partnership with Voya.
The company has been the Lead National Partner for the NPFC for the last 7 years.
“Every year, the NPFC finalists truly impress us with their knowledge and acumen,” says Heather Lavallee, Voya Financial Chief Executive Officer and CEE Board Member. “This program is a powerful reflection of Voya’s culture and commitment to advancing financial literacy, especially among students. I’m proud of all the students who compete and of our employees who volunteer to help these remarkable young people on their
journey toward greater financial confidence.”
With Voya’s partnership, student participation in the Challenge has doubled since the pandemic struck in 2020, more students from low-to-moderate income communities and communities of color compete than ever before, and our NPFC volunteer program is flourishing.
We cannot thank Voya enough for their amazing commitment to ensuring that young people nationwide are prepared to navigate their financial lives as they move into adulthood.
And now with 38 states requiring personal finance to graduate high school, together we are sure to reach the next 100,000 students even faster.
Voya volunteers with the 2025 NPFC championship team.
Ruth Cookson, CEE Sr. Manager, Educational Content, presenting at FinEd50 Educator Essentials Forum
The Diamond Gala: A Brilliant Evening
In April, CEE held its Diamond Gala at The Pierre Hotel, New York honoring Kelly Mahon Tullier, Vice Chair, Chief People and Corporate Affairs Officer at Visa; and Jeremy Siegel, Professor of Finance at The Wharton School and Chief Economist at WisdomTree for their contributions and commitment to financial education for young people.
The gala was a huge success, raising over $718,000! These funds provide students with the knowledge and skills to help them make better decisions for themselves, their families, and their communities.
Highlights of the evening included a fireside chat, hosted by CEE Board Member, Susan McDermottdeTray, in conversation with CEE students, Ebony Stapleton, Gursaheb Chadha and Alexei Varah and the honoring of Nan J. Morrison, retired President and CEO of CEE with the William A. Forbes Award for her 15 years of leadership at CEE. After dinner we all enjoyed an engaging fireside chat with the honorees hosted by our Board Chair, Rebecca Patterson. We also recognized two teachers with The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Teaching Champion Awards: Manoj Thadhani, Syosset Senior High School, Syosset, NY; and Ian Weissman, Repertory Company High School for Theatre Arts, New York, NY.
A very special thanks to our generous sponsors and benefactors who supported this event.
