The State of Our State
By Steve Lear
To Stay Number One, Minnesota Must Invest in Young People
In a recent article he wrote for the New York Times, Opinion Columnist Nicholas Kristof posed the following question to his readers:
Which state does best at ensuring the well-being of its citizens, giving them health, education, and hope?
The answer might surprise you. Citing research from the State of the Nation Project, a bipartisan study comparing states on 31 quality-of-life measures, Kristof reported that Minnesota ranks first in the country.
That’s a result worth celebrating!
Too often in recent years, Minnesota has been in the national spotlight for the wrong reasons. This has left many with a negative impression of our state. While there is always room for improvement, we should be careful not to assume that the grass is greener elsewhere. By many measures, Minnesota is already one of the best places to live in America.
Let’s focus on maintaining our number one ranking and improving the areas where we still face challenges.
Too Many Minnesota Youth Are in Crisis
According to the research linked above, one of the state’s top issues to tackle is improving the mental health of our young people.
The causes of mental health struggles are numerous and complex. One possible contributing factor could be that too many people are living in “the gap.” This occurs when you measure your progress against an expectation, a vision, or an idealized version of how life is supposed to be. Instead of celebrating how far you have come, you focus on how far you still have to go.
I have often been accused of looking at life through rose-colored glasses, and I wear those glasses proudly. Perhaps this is a good moment to pause and appreciate our state’s progress rather than obsess over what remains to be done.
Yet as a money guy, I always connect part of the mental health challenges our youth face to a lack of financial literacy. While money isn’t everything, it affects nearly every aspect of life. If you’re under financial stress, it impacts relationships, education, career choices, and overall well-being. That’s why I’m thrilled that Minnesota has passed a law requiring high school students to complete a personal finance course before graduation. I believe we now have a platform to improve the mental health of our young people by equipping them with the skills to build strong financial futures.
As President of Jump$tart Minnesota, I have the privilege of working with organizations across our state that advance financial literacy, as defined in the Minnesota Department of Education’s Financial Literacy Guidance Framework. I encourage you to review the framework to understand what we are trying to teach and why it matters:
https://stevelear.org/a-roadmap-for-financial-readiness/
When discussing youth, I am referring to people under 25. In many ways, age 25 is when young adults become fully independent and begin assuming complete responsibility for their financial lives.
This is one reason why Jump$tart Minnesota is encouraging its partner organizations to expand their outstanding personal finance programming beyond high school to include youth ages 18-25. I hope that suggestion is received as the compliment it’s meant to be. The work these organizations are already doing is remarkable.
How You Can Help Jump$tart Minnesota Succeed
Please be prepared to:
Support our partner organizations. The following are some of the Minnesota-based organizations actively working to advance financial literacy in our state. We hope learning more about their work will inspire you to donate:
Best Prep
A nonprofit organization that provides innovative educational programs for students in grades 4-12. Students acquire business, career, and financial literacy skills through hands-on experiences that inspire success in work and life.
Minnesota Council on Economic Education (MCEE)
The Minnesota Council on Economic Education (MCEE) provides economic and personal finance education to train teachers, engage students, and reach communities across the state. At the core of MCEE’s mission are professional development programs to help teachers deliver exceptional economic and personal finance education in the classroom. Additional resources include student competitions, camps, and curricula for secondary and elementary students.
Junior Achievement North (JA)
Junior Achievement (JA) connects the classroom to the real world by offering experiential learning programs in financial literacy, career readiness, and entrepreneurship to students in grades 6-12 across Minnesota, North Dakota, and western Wisconsin.
Support our educators. Teaching personal finance isn’t easy. It requires patience, knowledge, and a willingness to discuss topics that many adults still find uncomfortable. Every teacher who takes on the responsibility of helping young people develop healthy attitudes and behaviors around money deserves your respect and encouragement.
Support this work. Please consider giving gifts of your time, expertise, money, and mentorship to the three organizations mentioned above.
For more information, please contact Steve Lear.
Working together, we can help Minnesota remain number one—not just in rankings, but in preparing our young people for successful, confident, and financially healthy lives. We appreciate your support!
