We spend twelve years in school learning history, math, and science. Yet many students graduate without ever learning how a checking account works, what an overdraft fee is, or why a missed payment can follow them for years.
That gap is finally starting to get attention.
In this episode of Give Me Credit, John Mackey and I discuss a new Minnesota law requiring high school students to complete a personal finance course before graduating. Beginning with students entering ninth grade in the 2024–2025 school year, financial literacy is no longer optional. Budgeting, taxes, credit, insurance, and investing will now be part of the curriculum.
It is a simple idea with a powerful implication: understanding money is a life skill.
During our conversation, we also reflect on where people actually learn about money today. For some, it happens around the dinner table. For others, it comes from trial and error, sometimes painful trial and error. And for many families, especially those who were never taught themselves, the knowledge gap can stretch across generations.
I share some stories from my time running community outreach programs while managing a mortgage department in Phoenix. I often started classes thinking we would talk about homeownership. Instead, the first lesson was usually much simpler.
What is a bank?
How does a checking account work?
What happens when you overdraft?
The people attending those classes were not uninterested in learning. Quite the opposite. Many came at night after work. Some brought their children, sometimes to help translate, sometimes so the kids could learn too. What they wanted most was understanding.
That experience changed the way I think about financial education. It is not only about investing or building wealth. It is about confidence. It is about removing fear from systems that feel intimidating or unfamiliar.
Minnesota’s new requirement acknowledges something important. Financial literacy should not depend on whether your parents happened to explain money at the dinner table.
It should be foundational.
In this episode, we talk about what should actually be taught in a real-world finance class, why practical knowledge matters more than theory, and how something as simple as understanding a deductible or a credit report can change a person’s starting point in life.
If you have ever wondered why so many adults feel unprepared to manage money, this conversation gets right to the heart of it.
Listen to the episode and tell us what you think.
And we would love to hear your story as well:
Where did you learn about money?
