EDINBURG, Texas – Melissa Lopez is an administrator for Region One Education Service Center. In an exclusive video interview with the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service, Lopez discussed the work of the Deep South Texas Financial Literacy Alliance.
“We started our work in 2012. In our region, historically, we’ve always done well when it comes to financial aid, informing our students about financial aid and having them apply,” Lopez said.
“But something that we really lacked on was the importance of financial literacy, how to manage their money, how to budget, how to save for their future, save for a rainy day.”
Lopez said Region One, on its own, did not have the resources to mount a meaningful financial literacy program. She said the organization knew that developing partnerships was the best way to have an impact.
“We enlisted the help of the community because we knew that – especially our banking institutions, in our community organizations – they have the resources in terms of personnel, they have curriculum, they have activities, they have the knowledge to be able to help our families,” Lopez said. “So that’s why this initiative or this alliance was formed. And throughout the years, we’ve done outreach to thousands upon thousands of students.”
Here is the interview:
Video
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