                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

ECONOMICS EDUCATION AND FINANCIAL LITERACY REQUIRED IN MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL
GRADES; BOARD OF EDUCATION TO ESTABLISH OBJECTIVES FOR ECONOMIC EDUCATION AND
FINANCIAL LITERACY; BANKING-AT-SCHOOL PROGRAMS (§ 22.1-200.03)

A. Instruction in the principles of the American economic system shall be
required in the public middle and high schools of the Commonwealth to promote
economics education and financial literacy of students and to further the
development of knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed for responsible
citizenship in a constitutional democracy.

B. The Board of Education shall develop and approve objectives for economics
education and financial literacy at the middle and high school levels, that
shall be required of all students, and shall provide for the systematic infusion
of economic principles in the relevant Standards of Learning, and in career and
technical education programs. The objectives shall include personal living and
finances; personal and business money management skills; opening an account in a
financial institution and judging the quality of a financial institution&#8217;s
services; balancing a checkbook; completing a loan application; the implications
of and differences between various employment arrangements with regard to
benefits, protections, and long-term financial sustainability; the implications
of an inheritance; the basics of personal insurance policies; consumer rights
and responsibilities; dealing with salesmen and merchants; debt management;
managing retail and credit card debt; evaluating the economic value of
postsecondary studies, including the net cost of attendance, potential student
loan debt, and potential earnings; state and federal tax computation; local tax
assessments; computation of interest rates by various mechanisms; understanding
simple contracts; and learning how to contest an incorrect bill.

C. To facilitate the objectives of economics education and financial literacy
through practical experiences, the Department shall confer with the State
Corporation Commission&#8217;s Bureau of Financial Institutions, and financial
and relevant professional organizations in the development of guidelines for
such literacy objectives. The guidelines shall include (i) rules and policies
governing the establishment, operation, and dissolution of school banks and
school credit unions; (ii) written agreements between partnering public schools
and financial institutions, including the disposition of funds donated or other
financial contributions provided by the partnering financial institution; and
(iii) such other matters as the Department may deem appropriate.

D. The Board shall not be required to evaluate student achievement concerning
economics education and financial literacy objectives in the Standards of
Learning assessments required by &#xA7; 22.1-253.13:3.

E. For the purposes of this section:
			&#8220;At-risk and disadvantaged students&#8221; means students having
socioeconomic or cultural risk factors that research indicates may negatively
influence academic achievement or may hinder an individual in reaching his life
goals.
			&#8220;Employment arrangements&#8221; means full-time employment, part-time
employment, independent contract work, gig work, piece work, contingent work,
day labor work, freelance work, and 1099 work.
			&#8220;Financial institution&#8221; means a bank, savings and loan
association, savings bank, or credit union authorized to conduct business in the
Commonwealth.
			&#8220;High school&#8221; includes grades nine through 12.
			&#8220;Middle school&#8221; includes grades six through eight.

HISTORY: 2005, c. 741; 2017, c. 522; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 25.