Achieving the Dream selects Greenville Technical College to participate in its Student Financial Empowerment Project

Achieving the Dream and Greenville Technical College (GTC) today announced that GTC will receive $25,000 over a two-year period to expand and strengthen financial empowerment activities designed to strengthen students’ money management skills and knowledge.

The grant, funded by OneMain Holdings, Inc. and administered by Achieving the Dream, recognizes that students’ ability to manage their money, including financial aid, plays a significant role in students’ ability to persist and complete their studies.  GTC is one of the five community colleges in the ATD network that are receiving grants to launch or expand student financial empowerment efforts.

“The Financial Education Center is part of our college mission of driving personal and economic growth through learning,” said Dr. Keith Miller, president of Greenville Technical College. “Sometimes that learning takes place in the classroom, but it can also take place in offices like this one, where students and staff can gain knowledge that impacts success and quality of life.”

“As the largest personal finance company in the U.S., OneMain recognizes the significant need for greater financial education, especially within the country’s college student population,” said Sheldon Caplis, Director of Community Relations for OneMain.  “OneMain is dedicated to supporting the communities in which we live and operate, and we are honored to expand our partnership with ATD to provide students with the critical financial empowerment tools necessary to achieve long-term collegiate, career and personal success.”  

“Helping students become knowledgeable, confident financial managers is a critical dimension of increasing student persistence and success,” said Dr. Karen A. Stout, President and CEO of Achieving the Dream. “This award recognizes Greenville Technical College’s readiness to deepen the network of supports inside and outside the classroom that help students reach their goals.”

At GTC, the grant will be used to help operate a new Financial Education Center, where volunteers work with students and employees to provide expertise in areas including banking and saving, budgets, credit, online security, debt management, and more. Second-year accounting students also assist, gaining real world experience as they provide counseling and education at the center, which opened this month and is also partially funded by a donor.

Achieving the Dream, Inc. is a national nonprofit that is dedicated to helping more community college students, particularly low-income students and students of color, stay in school and earn a college certificate or degree. Evidence-based, student-centered, and built on the values of equity and excellence, Achieving the Dream is closing achievement gaps and accelerating student success nationwide.

For more information, go to www.gvltec.edu/financial-literacy