July 21, 2017 UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State first-year student-athletes learned about the good, the bad and the ugly of personal finance on July 18, as part of their weekly summer bridge welfare and development series of workshops. The sessions are led by Penn State Intercollegiate Athletics' Student-Athlete Welfare and Development (SWD) unit.
The Nittany Lion students gained better insight into personal finance via a presentation conducted my Morgan Stanley's Global Sports & Entertainment (GSE) Financial Education Program. The GSE group offers tailored financial literacy programs, to better educate and empower athletes and entertainers, regardless of level, to help them make sound and informed choices concerning their finances.
The Penn State SWD program was facilitated by financial educator Aaron Harding, and featured important information, interactive exercises, and a real-world conversation with former National Football League player and television commentator, Bart Scott.
The presentation began with a video montage of Scott as an athlete, and as a sports broadcaster. In addition there was an excerpt from a documentary about Antoine Walker's financial miscues. Walker who won a NCAA title with the University of Kentucky in 1996, an NBA championship with the Miami Heat in 2006, and was also a three-time NBA All-Star for the Boston Celtics, had earned more than $110 million over his 12-year career. In 2010, he declared bankruptcy.
Scott spoke candidly about coming from an FCS school, Southern Illinois, to the NFL as an undrafted free-agent that made close to $60 million over his 11-year NFL career. He spoke of bad decisions early in his career that were based on, "Keeping up with the Joneses". He eventually learned that, "either I was going to take care of my money or someone else definitely would."
Scott stated, "It was his honor and responsibility, to speak with student-athletes about being financially literate, and taking responsibility for the decisions you make. It does not matter if you make $10 million or $10,000, will you learn to live within your means? Learn the difference between what you want, and what you actually need. Have a goal and plan, and be prepared to work hard for what you really want. I got into the NFL, and told myself, make the team first, and then work to become a starter, hopefully an all-pro, and to prepare for life after football while I was still playing football".
The presentation featured interactive learning activities, including ranking financial priorities, the real cost of lifestyle choices, and a role play that focused on the difficulty of telling friends and family no, when asked for money.
"I am frugal guy. Hearing Antoine Walker's and Bart Scott's stories, and doing some of the exercises we did at the presentation, I definitely feel good that my family has always preached about knowing the difference between what you want and what you need," said Brailyn Franklin, a football student-athlete. "I'm very thankful for the information we received at the session, and it was great to see and meet a former NFL player looking to help current student-athletes."
At the conclusion of the program, Harding reminded the group about the importance of having a budget, having an emergency fund, and building/maintaining good credit. "It's not only about making money", Harding said, "but protecting it, saving it, and growing it."
The summer bridge welfare and development series of workshops are provided through the ICA's office of Student-Athlete Welfare and Development. In the pursuit of the holistic development of Penn State's student-athletes, the unit provides education, resources and opportunities that support learning and the development of essential life skills vital to preparing them for a lifetime of impact.