Each year, NGPF Fellows have the option to award a Personal Finance Student of the Year Award' to a student who has demonstrated outstanding contributions in their personal finance class during the school year. We'll showcase one student each Wednesday, Thursday and Friday right here on the blog throughout the coming summer weeks. 

Students are selected based on the following criteria:

• Student has taken a personal finance class in the 2019-2020 school year that was taught by the NGPF Fellow who nominated them
• Student demonstrated outstanding performance in the class based on participation/academic excellence/passion for the subject matter

Congratulations this Wednesday go to:

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Student: Brooklyn Levenhagen

Teacher: Laura Schoenik

School: Menomonee Falls High School, Menomonee Falls (WI)

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“I think the value of a personal finance class is the ability to prepare myself for the future. I believe it is important as a young adult to understand the complexity of finance in order to live a financially stable life. From this class I have learned about taxes, budgeting, investing, job interviewing, loaning, and so much more. I feel that without a personal finance class I would lack knowledge in all those areas and would feel unprepared for life after high school. I have already applied my knowledge from my personal finance class in my life today. I recently have started working a few jobs and was able to use my knowledge from my career unit to help with interviewing and taxes. I also opened two bank accounts and was able to use what  I learned from my banking and budgeting unit to compare different accounts and choose the one that best fit my needs. The most valuable thing I learned from my personal finance class is about retirement. I have lofty dreams in the future and my personal finance class has helped me consider what I need to start saving now in order to live the life I want in retirement. All in all, personal finance is a valuable class that has truly helped me be prepared for my future ahead.”

-Brooklyn Levenhagen

About the Author

Yanely Espinal

Born and raised by Dominican, immigrant parents in Brooklyn, Yanely is a proud product of NYC public schools. She graduated from Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School in 2007 before going on to receive her bachelor's degree at Brown University in 2011. As a Teach For America corps member, Yanely taught third and fourth grade in Canarsie, Brooklyn. She received her master's degree from Relay Graduate School of Education in 2013. She spends her spare time making YouTube videos about personal finance on her channel, MissBeHelpful. Yanely also loves to dance, sew, paint, listen to podcasts, and babysit her 10 nieces and nephews!