Canton High School reality fair highlights push for financial literacy requirement in Mississippi
CANTON, Miss. (WLBT) – Students at Canton High School are navigating a simulation that asks them to pay rent, buy groceries, and keep the lights on — all on a mock salary tied to their grades.
The exercise is part of a reality fair, an event designed to expose students to personal finance before they enter the workforce.
Peyton Brown is the secretary treasurer for the Madison County Young Professionals Business League.
Brown said students are often caught off guard when they reach her station after already spending on housing and childcare.
“I know I’ve had plenty of students that have been shocked whenever they got to my station and they’ve already had to pay for housing and childcare, and they were like, ‘I don’t have any money left.’ I was like, ‘Yep, that’s how it works,’” Brown said.
The simulation comes as Mississippi lawmakers consider making financial education mandatory.
Senate Bill 24-83 has passed the Senate and is currently being considered in the House. The bill would require financial literacy instruction beginning in the sixth grade and make a stand-alone personal finance course a graduation requirement.
One advocate said teacher training is a key component of the legislation.
“The one that I saw had a funding mechanism in place that would allow teachers to be trained to teach this content. Because, as you will hear from many teachers, they don’t know automatically how to teach personal finance. So that’s what an organization like mine does,” said Selena Swartzfager, President of Mississippi Council on Economic Education.
The bill was authored by Sen. Daniel Sparks and is backed by Attorney General Lynn Fitch.
In a statement, Fitch said in part: “It makes them smarter consumers, homebuyers, business owners, and employers, and, in turn, creates a stronger, more resilient future for our State.”
If the bill passes, the new curriculum would begin in the 2027-2028 school year.
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