Thanks to Ren Makino and Sid Sharma for participating in the recent NGPF podcast show. Ren and Sid have interned at NGPF for over a year and have done great work supporting our mission. They are currently students at Palo Alto High School, where financial literacy is not taught as a standalone course but is incorporated into some economics courses in a limited fashion. I wanted to get their take on the biggest money issues they encounter as well as what their peers are dealing with in this affluent suburban community.

As you listen, you will hear some issues that may seem universal for teens while others are more typical of communities like Palo Alto. Given that our curriculum meets the needs of a diverse student population, I look forward to including additional student voices in future podcasts (so please let me know if you have students who you think might be good to interview!).

Listen to this podcast to hear Ren and Sid provide answers to the following questions:

How are their money attitudes similar/different from their parents?

How comfortable are they with new payment methods available from their smartphones?

What personal finance topics are most engaging among their peer group?

What are their savings strategies?

What lessons have they learned from their NGPF experience?

Thanks to Robbin Lussier, business teacher from Chicopee High School in Chicopee, MA for participating in this podcast. In this wide-ranging interview, Robbin's enthusiasm for personal finance shines through her words and actions. She advocates for a dedicated personal finance course at her school...and gets it. She searches for a solution to her professional development needs...and drives long distances to participate in it. She yearns for a curriculum that is practical and leverages technology in her classroom...and finds and implements it.

Listen to this podcast to hear Robbin’s answer to questions, including:

In putting your course together, what topics did you consider including?

What do you consider effective professional development?

What financial concepts do students seem most unfamiliar with?

What strategies do you utilize to involve parents?

Thanks to Ash Cash, personal finance expert, motivational speaker, author, entrepreneur, teacher and radio show host for taking time to participate in the NGPF podcast show. It's no wonder he rises every morning at 4am, he's got a lot going on!

Ash, a former banking executive, has successfully transitioned to an entrepreneurial life educating and motivating others to make financially responsible decisions We first discovered Ash in the process of building our curriculum and included one of his videos, Five Steps to Financial Freedom, in our Budgeting Basics lesson. His energy and motivational message resonated with our students, particularly his point about the importance of having a "side hustle." In our conversation, Ash discusses how he engages a wide spectrum of audiences; from prisoners at Rikers Island to high school students to corporate executives.

Be sure to listen to this podcast and get his answers to:

1) What approaches are most effective in reaching inner-city youth with personal finance education?

2) Having worked at both banks and credit unions, how would you describe the differences between these financial institutions?

3) How do your use your various platforms to motivate people to change their financial habits?

4) What is a "side hustle" and why do you think it is important for young people to have one?

Thanks to Jacqueline Prester, recently named 2015 Massachusetts Business Teacher of the Year, for participating in this NGPF podcast to share her best practices in social media and incorporating technology into her personal finance lessons.

Jacqueline Prester is a lifelong learner who uses her Twitter account (@MrsPrester) to create a global professional learning community (she is following over 1,000 people!). Beyond the Twitter following (and followers), she is an incredible asset to the educator community by sharing her expertise with audiences such as JumpStart, Federal Reserve and the Discovery Education community. What is also clear from our conversation is her passion for teaching! She constantly prowls the landscape in search of the best activities and projects for her students and shows her resourcefulness by writing grants to improve her students' learning experience. Her former students attest to the long-term impacts she is having. Thank you, Jacqueline!

You won't want to miss this podcast and get her answers to:

How can teachers get started using Twitter and what can they expect to get out of it?

How do you overcome the challenge of teaching in mixed grade level classroom (from 9th graders to 12th graders)?

What is the activity her students enjoy the most?

What online resources would she recommend to other teachers?

Will the Patriots go undefeated (oops, forgot to ask that one!)?

Thanks to John Pelletier who joined me recently on the NGPF Podcast show to discuss national trends in personal finance education and a solution to the professional development needs of high school instructors. Embarking on a second career with a mission to improve the financial literacy of young adults in Vermont, John has had a tremendous impact on creating a national dialogue on what the key ingredients of a personal finance program should look like.

Among John's many awards, he was recently selected as the 2015 Financial Literacy Champion by the Vermont JumpStart Coalition. Included in this broad-ranging discussion, John shares the "hot off the press" results of his biennial Report Card which evaluates state-level efforts to improve financial literacy in high schools. Enjoy!

Thanks to Candace Fikis, recent recipient of the 3M Outstanding Economic Educator Award, for participating in a recent NGPF podcast to discuss how she brings personal finance to life for her students.

Candace Fikis's passion for personal finance and economics becomes evident early on in this podcast. A self-professed "Econ nerd," she clearly brings a high level of energy and engagement to the classroom. Always on the lookout for engaging projects and activities, she continues to expand her teacher network through social media and conference attendance. If you are looking to start up an after-school personal finance club, she has some great ideas on how to build a winning team (her team won the Illinois State Championship earlier this year!

Listen to this podcast to hear Candace's insights into the following questions:

What do you think is best way to incorporate personal finance into your economics course?

How does you use Twitter to continue to hone your craft?

How do you effectively use group work to teach your students an invaluable life skill?

What are your most popular simulations to engage your students?

What are the secrets behind your best in state Personal Finance Challenge team?

Show Notes;

West Chicago economics teacher receives award (http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20150923/submitted/150929520/)

Thanks to Darren Gurney, recent recipient of the Alfred P. Sloan Teaching Champion Award for participating in a recent NGPF podcast and sharing his expertise.

In the shadow of Wall Street, Darren Gurney's enthusiasm and passion for investing is clear. His stock market simulation has a few wrinkles to it that go beyond the standard stock market game. Many of his former students have flourishing careers on Wall Street (and in the spirit of giving back visit his classes to offer their insights). Featured on CNBC (see show notes below), his students frequently get shoutouts from Jim Cramer too. By sharing his personal investing anecdotes, Darren also grounds his students to the challenges inherent in investing.

Listen to this webinar to hear Darren's answer to questions, including:

What drives your passion for personal finance?

Who tends to be better investors in your class: boys or girls?

How do you use popular songs (ok, I am dating myself here) like "You Can't Always Get What You Want" and "Satisfaction" to teach economic concepts?

Did you really predict the stock market decline of 2007-08?

Show notes:

New Rochelle High School Stock Market Challenge (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcT8WTvv-08)

Sample Presentations from New Rochelle High School Stock Market Challenge (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6X3-fWKwBVc)

Next Gen Personal Finance's Tim Ranzetta talks to Mark Kantrowitz, a Financial Aid Guru

Podcast intro 0:00 to 1:15

What got you interested in financial aid in the first place? - 1:15~3:44

What is the value of a College Education?- 3:44~6:07

As cost of education increases, what innovations are taking place? - 6:07~13:55

What is keeping all eligible students from applying for financial aid? - 13:55~15:58

Why is it so important to get this education about how to pay for college? - 15:58~17:24

Why do students not get through Community College and transfer to four year schools successfully? - 17:24~21:03

What advice would you give educators to encourage the "College Talk" between parents and students? - 21:03~28:06

How much student debt is appropriate? - 28:06~30:19

What are your thoughts about the new College Scorecard and changes coming to FAFSA? - 30:19~34:02

How will FAFSA deadlines be changing?- 34:02~36:13

What are some online tools to help students with paying for college? - 36:13~38:52

What is the biggest misunderstanding when it comes to Financial Aid? - 38:52 ~43:23

Is a college degree now fast becoming the high school degree of the past? - 43:23~45:18

Wrap-up - 45:18~45:58

Thank you to Brian Page, an Outreach and Education Manager at Budget Challenge for sharing his expertise with our educator community in this recent podcast. Brian spent over a decade teaching personal finance at Reading High School (Ohio) and now lends his expertise to supporting teachers implementing the Budget Challenge simulation in their classrooms.

Next Gen Personal Finance's Tim Ranzetta talks to Dottie Vollmer, an Peer Educator at Indiana University