Financial Literacy

• My local NE Ohio newspaper had an opinion piece supporting Ohio’s new law requiring high school students take a personal finance to graduate. (Cleveland.com) And here is a piece supporting current Michigan legislation published in the Detroit Free Press. 
• For those already in the work force without the benefit of a personal finance education, this article looks at how companies are encouraging financial wellness among their employees. (Yahoo Finance)

Investing

• The Visual Capitalist recaps the performance of every asset class in 2021, visually, of course.
• A Wealth of Common Sense takes a hard look at the data to address whether or not this is the greatest bull market in history.

Interesting “firsts”

• Apple hit a market cap of $3 trillion, albeit briefly, this week. (Reuters)
• Toyota topped GM in terms of car sales in the US in 2021. (CNBC, NYT-subscription may be required.) 

NFTs

• Bored Ape Yacht Club crosses $1 billion in total sales. (TheBlockCrypto)

Economics

• The great resignation continues: A record 4.5 million Americans quit their jobs in November. (AP News)
• December Jobs Report showed 199,000 new jobs, lower than expected, particularly after the ADP figures reported earlier in the week. (BLS data release) (Yahoo Finance)
• Did you know that the New York Fed developed an index to measure the impact of the pandemic on the supply chain? (Marketplace)  The index is really high, but suggests it may be peaking. (CNBC)

Banking/Credit

• Do your students use STEP? Neobank STEP just announced it will accept cash deposits from several popular locations, aiming to help its GenZ target market save more easily. (BusinessWire)
• BNPL payments (on-time and late) may begin to factor in credit scores. (NYT-subscription may be required)

Higher Ed

•  Data show that fewer students are going straight from high school to college. (Inside Higher Ed)

About the Author

Beth Tallman

Beth Tallman entered the working world armed with an MBA in finance and thoroughly enjoyed her first career working in manufacturing and telecommunications, including a stint overseas. She took advantage of an involuntary separation to try teaching high school math, something she had always dreamed of doing. When fate stepped in once again, Beth jumped on the opportunity to combine her passion for numbers, money, and education to develop curriculum and teach personal finance at Oberlin College. Beth now spends her time writing on personal finance and financial education, conducts student workshops, and develops finance curricula and educational content. She is also the Treasurer of Ohio Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy.