Money Smart Week^® Chicago

Money Smart Week (MSW) Chicago will take place April 20-26, 2008 in the Greater Chicago Metropolitan Area.

News

MSW Chicago Kicks-off with Financial Literacy Summit

Money Smart Week (MSW) Chicago kicked off Monday morning with a breakfast for partners and the second annual Financial Literacy & Education Summit.

The Chicago Fed and Visa teamed up to host the Summit, which was moderated by Jean Chatzky of Today Show and Oprah fame and featured speakers such as U.S. Treasurer Anna Cabral and Chris Gardner (real-life protagonist portrayed by Will Smith in The Pursuit of Happyness).

The panel discussion focused on the challenge of fostering financial literacy among the young people entering the workforce today. Video of the entire summit is available at the link above.

2008 Chicago Events Calendar Now Available

Hundreds of free educational classes, seminars and activities are scheduled to take place around the city during Chicago's Money Smart Week, April 20-26. The online calendar will guide you to these events, which focus on financial topics for people of all walks of life.

Money Smart Week Naperville Joins Chicago Campaign

Naperville will be joining the Money Smart Week Chicago campaign this year. Courses offered in the Naperville area will be listed in both the print and online version of the calendar of events.

Consumers Give MSW 2007 High Marks

Surveys distributed to consumers during Money Smart Week Chicago 2007 have been collected and tallied. Attendance for the 311 courses offered in April came to 9,850, with more than half of that representing attendance in youth programs.

Responses to questions regarding program quality and effectiveness were overwhelmingly positive. Word of mouth, partner-sponsored promotion and street-level marketing were the chief ways in which consumers learned about Money Smart Week.