Citadel and Citadel Securities, in Collaboration With EVERFI, Announce Nationwide Expansion of MarketWorks Financial Education Program

By AIT News Desk On May 19, 2020

All high school students, families and teachers across the country will have access to the free digital learning resource

Citadel and Citadel Securities, in collaboration with EVERFI, today announced the nationwide expansion of the MarketWorks investment education program. Launched in 2018, MarketWorks is a free digital learning course that equips high school students with an understanding of how the financial markets work. Citadel and Citadel Securities worked with EVERFI to co-develop this curriculum, which is currently being used in high schools across the Chicago, Dallas and New York metro areas at no cost to schools or students. Now, as schools remain closed amid COVID-19, they are making this free digital learning resource available to all high school students, teachers and families across the country.

Two-thirds of young adults lack basic knowledge about investing. MarketWorks takes students through a step-by-step learning curriculum that sets a foundation for building good financial health and capability. Through an engaging, interactive learning experience, students blend economic concepts with investing topics to learn how the government, corporations and individuals come together to participate in the financial marketplace. Modules are focused on financial markets and exchanges, the global economy, company financing from startup to IPO, and fundamentals of investing. The course concludes with an interactive investment portfolio simulation.

More than 13,000 students have completed the MarketWorks course since the program launched in 2018, across 325 schools in Chicago, Dallas and New York. Students that complete the program demonstrate on average a 55 percent increase in assessment scores on key investing topics, and 56 percent more students reported feeling prepared to determine how current events will impact the markets and economy after taking the course.

“We are passionate about providing educational opportunities in finance that open pathways for success. We believe all students should have access to this curriculum that will impart critical knowledge and empower them with stronger financial decision skills in their everyday lives,” said Gerald Beeson, Chief Operating Officer of Citadel and the Program’s Executive Sponsor. “MarketWorks has already expanded financial understanding for more than thirteen thousand students, and we are proud to bring this program to students, families and schools across the country, especially during this time when it is needed more than ever.”

Nearly all communities across the US have mandated or recommended school building closures for the remainder of the academic year, affecting approximately 51 million public school students and leaving a record number of educators and parents seeking engaging in-home, online instruction. EVERFI will work directly with its school and teacher networks nationally to provide hands-on support for administrators and teachers seeking to integrate MarketWorks into their curriculums. Citadel and Citadel Securities will also award 30 college savings scholarships to students who complete the MarketWorks program this year and submit an essay about what they learned through the course.

“EVERFI’s work with Citadel and Citadel Securities reflects a deep commitment to students – both ensuring they have equal access to education that will broaden future opportunities and preparing them for lifelong financial success. With this shared goal, we are providing investing education to all high school students so they can begin to have a greater understanding and appreciation for global financial markets,” said EVERFI’s Founder and CEO, Tom Davidson. “The value of thoroughly comprehending financial markets from a young age cannot be overstated and allows students to tackle any future financial decisions.”