Jim Cooper joins Neely’s Bend students for a photo

Rep. Jim Cooper (second from left) joins Neely’s Bend students for a photo.

Category: See the Good

Regions Shares Financial Education with Nashville 1st Graders, Special Guest Rep. Cooper

School day at Neely’s Bend Elementary opens with a lesson on the importance of making smart financial decisions.

U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper joined Regions Bank and Metro Schools leaders at Nashville’s Neely’s Bend Elementary Wednesday to help first graders learn about the importance of making smart financial decisions.

The financial education lesson is part of “Teach Children to Save Day” events that will occur nationwide throughout the month of April.

Cooper, who represents Tennessee’s 5th District, talked to the students after observing a class led by Nashville Regions Bank representatives.

“It’s never too early to learn that ‘a penny saved is a penny earned,’” Cooper said.

Nashville’s Neely’s Bend Elementary
Regions Branch Manager Brittney Cline teaches a lesson in financial education

Regions supports schools throughout the markets it serves in the Southeast, Midwest and Texas by providing a variety of financial education materials at no cost. Regions also provides additional resources that are available to consumers of all ages in the Personal Insights section of regions.com.

“The key to helping children understand how to manage money is to begin speaking with them while they’re young,” said Jim Schmitz, Middle Tennessee Area President for Regions Bank. “We work with schools throughout Tennessee to support financial education that meets the needs of individual classrooms. For younger students, it may be a basic introduction to money concepts. For older students, we dive deeper into budgeting, investing, managing a credit score and more. The end result is students are better prepared to avoid financial mistakes – and to successfully handle real-world financial matters.”

The classes began just after the school day opened at Neely’s Bend. Joining Cooper and Schmitz were Neely’s Bend Principal Donna Poag and Brittney Cline, a Regions Branch Manager in Nashville.

“Metro Schools students receive lessons about budgeting as freshmen in high school and also take a financial literacy course,” said Chris Henson, interim director of Metro Nashville Schools.

“We are happy to see our community partners helping to extend the continuum of knowledge on financial literacy to the elementary level.

“Learning about the benefits of making wise financial decisions empowers students for success beyond the classroom,” Henson added.