Last week, Regions Bank announced a half a million dollar commitment to Ole Miss to develop what they are calling a first-of-its-kind financial education program for student athletes.
It seems like a no-brainer. Not only is this a fantastic PR move in the wake of the ongoing O’Bannon appeal, but it is a practical attempt to curtail the sad stories we’ve all grown so accustomed to.
The star athlete who banked on a pro career, only to get injured. The kid who let a relative handle his financials, and then wound up with nothing but debt in the end. The pro that indulged well beyond his means.
We’re almost desensitized to it at this point, and not without reason. At some point or another we all face financial questions. Whether it’s paying back debt, or just trying to understand our mortgage, in some small way we’re all in the dark at one time or another.
So why should we place some sort of special emphasis on educating athletes?
Knowing What You Don’t Know
My wife and I are at that stage in our lives where people are wondering why we don’t have children yet. My mom wants to have a grandchild so badly, she’ll scoop up any baby in sight and parade it around as if to show that she’s capable of doing the job. The comments are even getting less playful, and just come across as insistent.
“It’s not as hard as you think.”
“It’s different when they’re yours.”
“You don’t want to be too old to keep up with them.”
They’re all right, but they don’t see the real issue. We were both the oldest, and both watched our parents struggle at some point or another. And we aren’t naive enough to think we can be prepared for everything. But we know that, like in sports, preparation leads to success.
We want our kids to have what we didn’t, and a financial education is a big part or that.
My wife and I have talked at length about how ridiculous it is that financial competency wasn’t part of the curriculum in our home states of Missouri and Louisiana. (Though it wasn’t the only thing left out.) I remember getting my first credit card and being terrified of it, because I didn’t really understand the logistics of spending money I didn’t have. I didn’t learn the concept of Time Value of Money until I was in college, and only because it was necessary for my major. I still don’t quite know how my 401k works.
It’s a terrifying concept when you realize what you don’t know. Even more so when your future hinges on it.
Taking A Step Forward
It might be funny to laugh about the dumb jock stereotype every now and then, but life isn’t an 80s movie. Intellectually, athletes are no different from the rest of us. There are the Rhodes Scholars, the less-than-intelligent, and everyone in between. Student athletes come from every imaginable culture and background, so really their struggles are indicative of the rest of our society.
There is no reason financial education isn’t a standard part of the curriculum for every student in in every school in this country. And not as a portion of an existing course. It should be something we take our time with, taught independent of unrelated material. For all the hours we spend pouring over banking accounts and credit statements in our lifetime, it’s worth a semester to understand it before it’s too late.
I fully expect this program Ole Miss is implementing to change some lives for the better, because they are imparting practical knowledge that every one of their athletes will need to be prepared for the future. And I hope the university as a whole, and really all universities, follow suit and implement similar programs. Ideally this would be a part of the national high school curriculum, but for now it really is a step in the right direction.
Hopefully, just the first step.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.