National Financial Awareness Day: Expanding Opportunity Through Financial Education
By Ben Joergens, Director of Financial Empowerment, Old National Bank
National Financial Awareness Day is a reminder of the important role financial education plays in helping people build confidence, make informed decisions, and create brighter futures. Financial literacy is about more than understanding money. It is about empowering individuals and families with the knowledge and tools they need to pursue their goals and navigate life's financial decisions.
At Old National, we believe everyone deserves access to financial education, regardless of age, income, background, or life experience. That is why we are committed to providing practical, accessible resources that help people improve their financial well-being and build confidence in managing their finances.
One of the ways we do this is through our award-winning Real-Life Finance® program. Through partnerships with schools, nonprofit organizations, employers, and community groups, we provide education on topics such as budgeting, saving, credit, debt management, homeownership, entrepreneurship, retirement planning, and financial goal setting. These programs are designed to meet people where they are and help them take meaningful steps toward achieving their financial goals.
To make learning even more accessible, Old National offers the Real-Life Finance® eLearning platform, featuring 11 personal finance topics and 46 self-paced lessons that individuals can access whenever and wherever it is convenient. Portions of the curriculum are also available in Spanish, helping us better serve the diverse communities across our footprint.
We also know that strong financial habits often begin at a young age. Through school partnerships, youth programming, and Family Money Talks resources, we provide age appropriate financial education for students and families, helping build a foundation for long term financial success.
As learning preferences continue to evolve, so does our approach. In addition to workshops and classroom learning, we share financial knowledge through articles, videos, social media content, and the Real-Life Finance® Podcast, making it easier for people to access trusted information in the format that works best for them.
At its heart, financial literacy is not about creating financial experts. It is about helping people feel confident enough to take the next step. Whether that means creating a budget, building savings, improving credit, preparing for homeownership, or planning for the future, education creates confidence, and confidence creates opportunity. On National Financial Awareness Day, we are proud to celebrate the power of financial education and our commitment to helping individuals, families, and communities thrive.
For financial education resources, click here.
