PRINCE FREDERICK, Md. – One Calvert County team of middle school students and one individual middle school student have been named winners in regional and statewide competitions organized by the Maryland Council on Economic Education. The winners of the economics and financial literacy challenges were announced at an awards ceremony on Wednesday, May 18, 2022.  Click here for complete article

AWARDS EVENT PRESS RELEASE       

STUDENTS FROM ACROSS MARYLAND WIN STATEWIDE FINANCIAL LITERACY AND ECONOMICS COMPETITIONS

More than 100 elementary, middle and high school students from 13 Maryland counties were honored on Wednesday, May 18 2022, by the Maryland Council on Economic Education (MCEE) as winners of its statewide financial literacy and economics competitions. The students were celebrated at an annual luncheon and awards ceremony - MCEE’s first in-person awards ceremony in three years - attended by more than 200 guests at Towson University.

Nearly 20,000 students from 20 Maryland counties and Baltimore City participated in the MCEE-organized competitions this school year - the most students ever participating in MCEE programs.

Awards were presented to winning students in these competitions:

• Stock Market Game™ is an educational simulation that teaches about the world of investing, the American economic system and the global economy. Students work in teams to invest and managing an imaginary $100,000 portfolio while developing skills in math, language arts, research and critical thinking.
• InvestWrite Essay Competition: a national writing competition that reinforces the economic concepts students learned by participating in the Stock Market Game™.     
• Maryland Personal Finance Challenge: an academic competition that provides high school  teams from across the state with the opportunity to learn and demonstrate knowledge and application of personal finance concepts during a one-day academic competition. The competition is sponsored by M&T Bank, StateFarm, First Financial Federal Credit Union, Aberdeen Proving Ground Federal Credit Union, Towson University College of Business & Economics.
• The Maryland Economics Challenge: the only program of its kind that tests micro and        macroeconomic principles as well as knowledge of the world economy in one-day competitions. 
• Financial Literacy Poster Competition: a creative competition where students demonstrate their understanding of economic concepts. 

The winning students, listed by county, are:

Anne Arundel County: 

• Stock Market Game™:
• • The team of Om Desai, Ethan Haslup, Ethan Howe, John Greenwalt, Ethan Nauroth, and Varesah Wilkerson from Arundel High School - high school state champions of the yearlong Stock Market Game™
  • The team of Koli Pendergraph, Alejandro Williamson, Zoey Zhangfrom Piney Orchard Elementary school in Odenton - elementary school Southern Region winners
  • A team of students from Central Middle School in Edgewater - middle school Spring state champions 
• Financial Literacy Poster Competition: Sixth graders MeiHei Chan and Lillian Oberlander from Crofton Middle School, and second grader Carys Kuhn from Piney Orchard Elementary School 

Baltimore County:

• Stock Market Game™: 
• • The team of Benjamin Boxler, Raquel Okai, Ryan Okai from Sparks Elementary - elementary school state champions of the yearlong Stock Market Game™. The team is sponsored by First Financial Federal Credit Union.  
  • The team of Darren Hiller from Loyola Blakefield Middle School in Towson - middle school state champion of the yearlong Stock Market Game™. The team is sponsored by First Financial Federal Credit Union.   
  • The team of Henry Byran, Gavin Chung, Andrew Hanna, and Spencer Pettit from The Jemicy school in Owings Mills - middle school Northern Region winners of the Spring Stock Market Game™. 
• Financial Literacy Poster Competition: Sixth grader Graham TerBeek from Dumbarton Middle School in Towson

Calvert County: 

• Stock Market Game™: The team of Kaylee Rossi and Samantha Winston from Northern Middle School in Owings - middle school Southern Region winners 
• Investwrite Essay Competition: Madalyn Sokolov from Northern Middle School - winner of the Grades 6-8 Division

Carroll County: 

• Financial Literacy Poster Competition: Eighth graders Suniti Das and Caitlyn Dean from Sykesville Middle School

Dorchester County: 

• Financial LIteracy Poster Competition: second grader Addison Maier from South Dorchester School and third graders Kyla Jones and Kendall Bradford from North Dorchester Middle School

Frederick County: 

• Stock Market Game™: The team of Luke Adams, Zach Ahern, Oliver Ellison, and Xavier Phillips from Brunswick High School - high school Northern Region winners
• Financial LIteracy Poster Competition: Third grader Brianna Barth from Blue Heron Elementary School, third grader Ryan Robbins from Deer Crossing Elementary School, and first graders Izzy Hite and Wesley Hardin from Liberty Elementary School

Harford County:

• Stock Market Game™: 
• • The team of Lara Caba, Ella LaFleur, Isabella Watson from Homestead Wakefield Elementary School in Bel Air - elementary school state champions. The team is sponsored by APG Federal Credit Union.
  • A team of fifth graders from Roye Williams Elementary School in Havre de Grace - elementary school Northern Region winners. The team is sponsored by APG Federal Credit Union.
• Financial Literacy Poster Competition: Third grader Jose Gable from Meadowvale Elementary School in Havre de Grace 

Howard County: 

• Stock Market Game™: The team of Courtney Brooks, Charlotte Mager, and Arnali Tellis from Bonnie Branch Middle School in Ellicott City - Central Region winners 
• Maryland Personal Financial Challenge: The “AOF1” Team ”of Nathaniel Sager, Noah Hoffman, Anuj Alamasety, and David Liu from Applications and Research Lab in Ellicott City 
•  Maryland Economics Challenge
• • The “Hayek’s Hammer” Team'' of Dhishan Reddy, Summit Sarkar, David Lieman, and Sahith Mada - juniors from Mt. Hebron High School in Ellicott City  - winner of the Adam Smith Division. 
  • The “Smith’s Scythe’s” Team” of Alex Nath, Diego Salamanca, and Nandhu Pillai - sophomores from Mt. Hebron High School in Ellicott City - winners of the David Ricardo Division.
• Financial Literacy Poster Competition: Sixth graders Julie Gable and Varshini Padmanaban from Patapsco Middle School in Ellicott City
• Investwrite Essay Competition: Fifth grader Humza Nooruddin from Pointers Run Elementary School in Clarksville - winner of the Grades 4-5 Division

Montgomery County: 

• Stock Market Game™
• • A team of students from Clarksburg High School - spring high school state champions 
  • A team of students from Damascus High School - spring high school Central Region winners
    

Prince George’s County: 

• Stock Market Game™: one team of students from Crossland High School, sponsored by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) - Southern Region winners

Queen Anne’s County: 

• Financial Literacy Poster Competition: Chloe Hernandez, a sixth-grader from Centreville Middle School

Wicomico County: 

• Financial Literacy Poster Competition: fourth graders Annie Richerson and Jeremy Quan from North Salisbury School

Worcester County: 

• Investwrite Essay Competition: 12th grader Gus Emm from Stephen Decatur High School - winner of the Grades 9-12 Division
• Financial Literacy Poster Competition: Seventh grader Marcella Alix from Snow Hill Middle School

Said Julie Weaver, MCEE Executive Director, “The winning students should be proud of this statewide honor. They have demonstrated their understanding of financial and economic concepts, as well as the importance for all students to learn about finances and how our economy works.”

The competitions are coordinated by the Maryland Council on Economic Education, the nearly 70 year-old nonprofit that assures that Maryland's school children leave high school equipped with the economic and financial literacy knowledge and decision-making skills they will need to make informed decisions as consumers, workers, citizens, savers, investors and participants in the global economy. In addition to student programs, MCEE offers free professional development and financial literacy education training and lesson plans for educators. Based on the campus of Towson University, MCEE supports more than 2,000 teachers each year who reach over 126,000 Maryland students. 

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Ramon Looby is president and chief executive of the Maryland Bankers Association. Julie Weaver is executive director of the Maryland Council on Economic Education.

To improve financial resiliency and build a brighter and more prosperous future for our children, the time is now to support expanded access to financial education for all students in Maryland.

In its latest state-by-state survey, the American Public Education Foundation gave Maryland a C grade for its stagnant implementation of financial literacy standards in schools. Unfortunately, this mediocre evaluation did not come as a surprise for many Maryland parents with school-age children. Despite being widely supported by parents and students, only eight of Maryland’s 24 public school systems have financial literacy graduation requirements mandating that students complete a financial literacy course before graduating from high school.

Click here for the full article

In honor of Financial Literacy Month, the Maryland Council for Economic Education (MCEE) is delivering a robust slate of programs and resources for students, educators and the public to raise awareness of and educate communities on the importance of Financial Literacy.

Financial Literacy Month, first celebrated nationally in 2004, brings attention to the importance of financial education which teaches the skills necessary to make smart financial decisions, including those related to banking and savings, student loans, homebuying, credit card debt, and personal budgeting.

MCEE’s Financial LIteracy Month initiatives include:

• Financial Literacy Month Resource Calendar: Packed with resources, this calendar features informational videos, educational activities, news stories on financial literacy topics, discussion prompts and games. Find it here: https://econed.org/Financial-Literacy/

• Weekly Financial Literacy Webinars: Every week, MCEE will hold FREE webinars on topics that support the Financial Literacy education of educators, students and the public. Webinars include:
  
• • Careers in Finance-Panel Discussion - March 30, 7-8pm: featuring representatives from State Farm Insurance, Paypal, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), and McCormick, this panel will explore the variety of careers available in finance.
    
    • Understanding the Public Service Student Loan Forgiveness Program - April 5, 7-8pm: this webinar guides educators in understanding and applying for student loan forgiveness. 

• Schemes and Scams - April 12, 7-8pm: Special Supervisory Agent Keith Custer from the FBI’s Complex Financial Crimes Unit will guide attendees on how to spot scams and safeguard their savings. Register here.
  

• Understanding the Financial EcoSystem - April 21, 5-6pm: Representatives from FINRA will guide teachers and students in an informational exploration of the financial landscape. Register here.
  

• Family Activities One-Pager: MCEE has created a one-pager featuring prompts and activity suggestions for families to complete and discuss at home to expand their financial literacy knowledge. Find it here. 

  To learn more about MCEE’s programs, visit https://www.econed.org/.

Student teams from Harford County's Ring Factory and Joppatowne Elementary schools are winners in the Stock Market Game Maryland Fall championships.

Ring Factory won the Elementary School State Championship and Joppatowne won the North Region Elementary School Championship, according to a news release from the Maryland Council on Economic Education, which organizes the program.

Click here for the full article

Impressive teams of elementary, middle and high school students from across Maryland have been named Regional and State Championship winners of the Fall Stock MarketGame™ competition, organized by the Maryland Council on Economic Education (MCEE).

The Stock Market Game™ gives teams of students from across Maryland an imaginary $100,000 to invest over ten weeks on the New York, American and NASDAQ markets. More than 713 teams competed in the Stock Market Game™ this year. Winners this Fall include:

State Championships: 

• Elementary School Champions: Ring Factory Elementary School, Harford County

• Middle School Champions: Calverton School, Calvert County 

• High School Champions: Clarksburg High School, Montgomery County 

Regional Championships: 

     Northern Region:

• Elementary School Champions: Joppatowne Elementary School, Harford County  

• Middle School Champions: Brunswick Middle School, Frederick County  

• High School Champions: Brunswick High School, Frederick County  

     Central Region:

• Elementary School Champions: Pointers Run Elementary School, Howard County

• Middle School Champions: Easton Middle School, Talbot County  

• High School Champions: Clarksburg High School,. Montgomery County

    Southern Region:

• Elementary School Champions: Marley Elementary School, Anne Arundel County 

• Middle School Champions: Monarch Global Academy, Anne Arundel County

• High School Champions: Stephen Decatur High School, Worcester County 

The Maryland Council on Economic Education offers the Stock Market Game™ to students and teachers throughout Maryland each spring and fall to provide education about stock markets, the American economic system and the global economy. Participants develop skills in math, language arts, research and critical thinking, while building and maintaining a stock portfolio.

The unique competition gives students real-world experience in investing, requiring them to make decisions about the direction of markets, buying or selling stocks, and completing transactions online. With real-time portfolio statement updates, teams are able to see how their team ranks compared to others, as well as the current value of their stocks.

Winning teams will be celebrated at an awards ceremony this spring. To learn more about the Stock Market Game™, visit https://www.econed.org/page-18300.

A team of elementary students from Howard County has won the Fall Stock Market Game Maryland Central Region Elementary School Championship.

A team of students at Pointers Run Elementary School in Howard County drew upon their investing and financial literacy skills to win the Maryland Central Region Elementary School Championship of the Fall Stock Market Game competition, which is organized by the Maryland Council on Economic Education.

Read complete article here

Mt. Hebron High School economics teacher Vann Prime has won the Council for Economic Education’s (CCE’s) 2021 John Morton Excellence in the Teaching of Economics Award. This is the most prestigious national award given to economics educators.

The award is given annually to an outstanding elementary, middle, and high school teacher. It recognizes teachers who demonstrate exemplary teaching techniques that improve students’ economic understanding, and awareness of economics and economic decision making, in and out of the classroom.

Mr. Prime received his award at the annual CEE conference held this fall. At the event, he joined the elementary and middle school awardees to share best practices on classroom techniques.

In addition to teaching economics, Mr. Prime is the faculty coach of Mt. Hebron’s National Economics Challenge Teams, which have placed first nationally for the past three years. He has also coached Team USA at each International Economics Olympiad since 2019.

The Council for Economic Education’s mission is to equip K-12 students with the tools and knowledge of personal finance and economics so that they can make better decisions for themselves, their families, and their communities.

Click here for full article

National Economic Education Month promotes the importance of teaching economics in our schools.

Governor Larry Hogan has joined the Maryland Council on Economic Education in proclaiming October as Economic Education Month. The observance promotes the importance of teaching economics in our K-12 schools. 

Economics is all around us. It teaches us that scarcity forces everyone to make choices, and our choices come with costs. Students with a clear understanding of basic economic principles will be equipped to make educated decisions in the real world.

By studying how our economy works, young people can also learn how to make efficient choices in managing their own scarce resources. Economic education involves teaching children decision-making skills they can apply to all areas of their lives which are necessary to make informed choices as engaged citizens.

Preparing our children for success in life involves teaching them critical decision-making skills when they are young. Providing teachers with innovative and meaningful educational opportunities is one of the most important things we can do to ensure prosperity in our students’ lives and in our communities.

The Maryland Council on Economic Education, based on the campus of Towson University, has served for more than 65 years to promote the teaching of economics and decision making in K-12 schools through providing resources, programs, and professional development workshops for teachers focused on improving the instruction of economics. Economic education in our schools depends on K-12 educators being equipped with high-quality training. They also require resources to ensure students have equitable access to classroom experiences that develop the skills necessary to make informed choices as individuals and members of their community.

Throughout October MCEE will offer special events focused around promoting awareness of economic education statewide. These include:

• Hosting Towson University Economist and Vice President, Dr. Daraius Irani, on October 20^th for a virtual update for teachers and community members on Maryland’s economy and his thoughts on the future.

• A partnership program with the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond on October 13^th to discuss the new monetary policy tools that the Federal Reserve is using to help manage the United States economy and the impact of the COVID-19 virus.

• Providing scholarships for Maryland teachers to attend the National Financial Literacy and Economic Education Conference to be held on September 29^th-October 1^st.

• Promoting resources for teaching economic concepts and decision making on our website and social media platforms.

Nationally, MCEE is being joined in recognizing and celebrating Economic Education Month by the Council for Economic Education, the Federal Reserve Bank, and others.  Follow #EconEdMonth for news and updates throughout the month.

 

 

We are thrilled to announce the Maryland Spring 2021 InvestWrite winners!

InvestWrite is an innovative national essay writing competition that allows students to reflect on the learning process by writing about their experience playing The Stock Market Game. Students are able to utilize their newfound knowledge about the stock market by explaining their investment strategies and their recommendations based on what they have learned about saving and investing.

Maryland statewide InvestWrite winners are selected for elementary, middle and high school. The selected champions receive a $50 cash prize and a banner for their school. In lieu of a banner, home school students receive a yard sign recognizing their achievement. Congratulations to all the hard-working winners!