2015 Utah Code
Title 53A - State System of Public Education
Chapter 13 - Curriculum in the Public Schools
Part 1 - General Courses of Instruction
Section 110 - Financial and economic literacy education.

Effective 5/12/2015
53A-13-110. Financial and economic literacy education.

• (1) As used in this section:
  • (a) "Financial and economic activities" include activities related to the topics listed in Subsection (1)(b).
  • (b) "Financial and economic literacy concepts" include concepts related to the following topics:
    • (i) basic budgeting;
    • (ii) saving and financial investments;
    • (iii) banking and financial services, including balancing a checkbook or a bank account and online banking services;
    • (iv) career management, including earning an income;
    • (v) rights and responsibilities of renting or buying a home;
    • (vi) retirement planning;
    • (vii) loans and borrowing money, including interest, credit card debt, predatory lending, and payday loans;
    • (viii) insurance;
    • (ix) federal, state, and local taxes;
    • (x) charitable giving;
    • (xi) online commerce;
    • (xii) identity fraud and theft;
    • (xiii) negative financial consequences of gambling;
    • (xiv) bankruptcy;
    • (xv) free markets and prices;
    • (xvi) supply and demand;
    • (xvii) monetary and fiscal policy;
    • (xviii) effective business plan creation, including using economic analysis in creating a plan;
    • (xix) scarcity and choices;
    • (xx) opportunity cost and tradeoffs;
    • (xxi) productivity;
    • (xxii) entrepreneurism; and
    • (xxiii) economic reasoning.
  • (c) "Financial and economic literacy passport" means a document that tracks mastery of financial and economic literacy concepts and completion of financial and economic activities in kindergarten through grade 12.
  • (d) "General financial literacy course" means the course of instruction described in Section 53A-13-108.

• (2) The State Board of Education shall:
  • (a) in cooperation with interested private and nonprofit entities:
    • (i) develop a financial and economic literacy passport that students may elect to complete;
    • (ii) develop methods of encouraging parent and educator involvement in completion of the financial and economic literacy passport; and
    • (iii) develop and implement appropriate recognition and incentives for students who complete the financial and economic literacy passport, including:
      • (A) a financial and economic literacy endorsement on the student's diploma of graduation;
      • (B) a specific designation on the student's official transcript; and
      • (C) any incentives offered by community partners;
  • (b) more fully integrate existing and new financial and economic literacy education into instruction in kindergarten through grade 12 by:
    • (i) coordinating financial and economic literacy instruction with existing instruction in other areas of the core standards for Utah public schools, such as mathematics and social studies;
    • (ii) using curriculum mapping;
    • (iii) creating training materials and staff development programs that:
      • (A) highlight areas of potential coordination between financial and economic literacy education and other core standards for Utah public schools concepts; and
      • (B) demonstrate specific examples of financial and economic literacy concepts as a way of teaching other core standards for Utah public schools concepts; and
    • (iv) using appropriate financial and economic literacy assessments to improve financial and economic literacy education and, if necessary, developing assessments;
  • (c) work with interested public, private, and nonprofit entities to:
    • (i) identify, and make available to teachers, online resources for financial and economic literacy education, including modules with interactive activities and turnkey instructor resources;
    • (ii) coordinate school use of existing financial and economic literacy education resources;
    • (iii) develop simple, clear, and consistent messaging to reinforce and link existing financial literacy resources;
    • (iv) coordinate the efforts of school, work, private, nonprofit, and other financial education providers in implementing methods of appropriately communicating to teachers, students, and parents key financial and economic literacy messages; and
    • (v) encourage parents and students to establish higher education savings, including a Utah Educational Savings Plan account;
  • (d) in accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act, make rules to develop guidelines and methods for school districts and charter schools to more fully integrate financial and economic literacy education into other core standards for Utah public schools courses;
  • (e)
    • (i) contract with a provider, through a request for proposals process, to develop an online, end-of-course assessment for the general financial literacy course;
    • (ii) require a school district or charter school to administer an online, end-of-course assessment to a student who takes the general financial literacy course; and
    • (iii) develop a plan, through the state superintendent of public instruction, to analyze the results of an online, end-of-course assessment in general financial literacy that includes:
      • (A) an analysis of assessment results by standard; and
      • (B) average scores statewide and by school district and school;
  • (f) in cooperation with school districts, charter schools, and interested private and nonprofit entities, provide opportunities for professional development in financial and economic literacy to teachers, including:
    • (i) a statewide learning community for financial and economic literacy;
    • (ii) summer workshops; and
    • (iii) online videos of experts in the field of financial and economic literacy education; and
  • (g) implement a teacher endorsement in general financial literacy that includes course work in financial planning, credit and investing, consumer economics, personal budgeting, and family economics.

• (3) A public school shall provide the following to the parents or guardian of a kindergarten student during kindergarten enrollment:
  • (a) a financial and economic literacy passport; and
  • (b) information about higher education savings options, including information about opening a Utah Educational Savings Plan account.

• (4)
  • (a) The State Board of Education shall establish a task force to study and make recommendations to the board on how to improve financial and economic literacy education in the public school system.
  • (b) The task force membership shall include representatives of:
    • (i) the State Board of Education;
    • (ii) school districts and charter schools; and
    • (iii) private or public entities that teach financial education and share a commitment to empower individuals and families to achieve economic stability, opportunity, and upward mobility.
  • (c) In 2013, the task force shall:
    • (i) review and recommend modifications to the course standards and objectives of the general financial literacy course described in Section 53A-13-108 to ensure the course standards and objectives reflect current and relevant content consistent with the financial and economic literacy concepts listed in Subsection (1)(b);
    • (ii) study the development of an online assessment of students' competency in financial and economic literacy that may be used to:
      • (A) measure student learning growth and proficiency in financial and economic literacy; and
      • (B) assess the effectiveness of instruction in financial and economic literacy;
    • (iii) consider the development of a rigorous, online only, course to fulfill the general financial literacy curriculum and graduation requirements specified in Section 53A-13-108;
    • (iv) identify opportunities for teaching financial and economic literacy through an integrated school curriculum and in the regular course of school work;
    • (v) study and make recommendations for educator license endorsements for teachers of financial and economic literacy;
    • (vi) identify efficient and cost-effective methods of delivering professional development in financial and economic literacy content and instructional methods; and
    • (vii) study how financial and economic literacy education may be enhanced through community partnerships.
  • (d) The task force shall reconvene every three years to review and recommend adjustments to the standards and objectives of the general financial literacy course.
  • (e) The State Board of Education shall make a report to the Education Interim Committee no later than the committee's November 2013 meeting summarizing the findings and recommendations of the task force and actions taken by the board in response to the task force's findings and recommendations.

Amended by Chapter 415, 2015 General Session