Stephen Jorgensen, dean of the College of Human Environmental Sciences, and Rob Weagley, associate professor and chair of the MU Department of Personal Financial Planning, accept a check from State Farm Insurance’s David Haymon and Ryan Kinney on Sept. 6, 2011.
The Office for Financial Success (OFS), located in the College of Human Environmental Sciences (HES), received a $10,000 donation from State Farm Insurance on Sept. 6, 2011. State Farm’s gift will help the office upgrade their facilities from their current location in the basement of Stanley Hall to a more accessible and highly trafficked location on the first floor of the building.
"The overall benefit for this move is to the students," Ryan Law, OFS director and the director of the University of Missouri Council on Economic Education, said. "This move will increase the visibility of the Office for Financial Success, so that more students will be able to utilize the services that we have available, including financial counseling and volunteer income tax assistance."
The gift could not come at a more crucial time. More and more college students across the country are struggling to pay for college degrees while also balancing their checkbooks. According to the U.S. Department of Education, the average college senior's debt is more than $23,000. In addition, college students often struggle with other financial issues such as credit card debt or how to use credit wisely, and many need help with financial skills such as budgeting, investment education and making large purchases. The OFS addresses these concerns by staffing trained student volunteers who are studying personal financial planning at MU. Counselors at the OFS provide free financial counseling for MU students, faculty and staff. In addition, the OFS provides discounted financial counseling for the community.
The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program (VITA) is another service provided by the OFS and IRS-certified personal financial planning students. This program provides tax filing assistance to low-to-middle income families and individuals in Missouri. In 2011, the VITA program assisted in filing over 1,700 returns, which keeps money in local communities by saving taxpayers over a million dollars in fees.
"The Office for Financial Success shares a very important part of State Farm's mission statement: helping people manage the risks of everyday life," says David Haymon, a State Farm Agency field executive. "State Farm is pleased to award this grant, which will increase the capacity for MU students and faculty to serve our community."
For more information about supporting the Office for Financial Success, contact Nancy Schultz at schultzn@missouri.edu or (573) 882-5142.
More stories: Programs and facilities
