Understanding Credit

How to protect your credit score

We all remember our high school and college days where we tried so hard to make the grade.  Despite our best efforts, they only matter so much.  Another grade that we all probably spend less time trying to get is our credit score.  Credit scores have become one of those things that is simply out out sight, thus out of mind. Despite this, they have become increasingly important as a result of the current, global economic uncertainty.  Bankers, mortgage lenders, landlords, and even potential employers may ask to look at your credit score before lending you money, renting you an apartment, or even giving you a job!

When looking at your credit score, it may be hard to interpret as good or bad.  It is important to remember that your credit score is expressed on a scale between 300 and 850, with an average score in the range of 700. If you are wondering where you can access your credit score, there are three major credit reporting agencies-Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion-analyze your credit risk level based on the following scoring criteria:

• Bill-paying habits
• Collections
• Debt level
• Credit history
• Recent activity
• Court judgments and bankruptcies

There are some simple things that you can do, however, to ensure that your score remains high, or increases, including: paying bills on time, only using the credit that you need, keeping the balance on credit cards low, paying off credit card balances each month, and making sure that you do not bounce any checks.

By practicing these good financial habits, future lenders will likely offer you lower interest rates and lower costs.

For more information on credit scores and myths , paying yourself first, or how to invest your money, click here. 

The Center for Financial and Consumer Outreach is co-sponsoring an event entitled "Investing in 2012" on Monday, November 14, 2011 at Penn State Erie, the Behrend College.  The event will begin at 7:00PM and will be held in the Sam P. Black III Conference (180) in the Jack D. Burke Center.

The panel includes experts in the Finance field, including several faculty members of the Sam & Irene Black School of Business, as well as professionals from the community.  Each panelist will take time to present on topics that they feel are most important for investors to know in the coming year, including: IRAs, risk aversion, and hot sectors of the market.

This is a free event open to all in the community who wish to better understand what to expect in the coming year. Light refreshments will be provided. For more information, please click here.

Jump$tart is offering an educator conference in partnership with the National Educators' Association to be held this fall on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.. This conference is open to all educators who teach grades K-12 and are interested in incorporating financial literacy topics into their own classrooms. 

This conference will provide educators with unique networking opportunities with fellow educators from around the nation, 15 hours of professional development, a chance to meet and hear from national leaders in finance, government, and education, along with several other great opportunities.

Registration for this event is $350, including two nights of private hotel accommodations and all conference meals.  Teacher registration opens Tuesday, September 6, so make sure to mark it on your calendar to reserve your spot at this year's Jump$tart National Educators Conference. 

Not a teacher? There are also opportunities for financial literacy organizations to display some of their resources at the educator conference.

For more information about Jump$tart's National Educator Conference, please visit Jump$tart's website here.

This fall the Center for Financial and Consumer Outreach is pleased to introduce several new programs. Updated versions for both Driver's Training for the Credit Card Highway and CashCourse are also now available.  In addition, the Center for Financial and Consumer Outreach is offering a new general financial literacy program entitled "Getting a Smart Start with Money" this school year.  Through a strategic partnership with the National Financial Educators' Council, the CFCO is also introducing a Financial EduNation Initiative for students, parents, educators and the community.  This initiative is scheduled for release this fall.

In addition to expanding the programming that we offer, the CFCO also is in the process of developing more comprehensive train-the-trainer videos for our programs, so that we can train more educators, effectively reaching more students this academic year.

For an updated list of all our programs as well as a copy of our program request form and informational videos, Click Here.

If you are interested in learning more about the CFCO's financial literacy outreach programs, simply visit the link above, or click here.  In addition, there are samples of each presentation so that you can get a feel for what they include. Some programs also have informational videos for your viewing. Once you get to the site, simply click on the program that you would like to learn more about to view samples and additional information about that program. 

Also, if you are interested in requesting one, or more, of the programs, follow the link at the bottom of the page to the Program Request Form, or click here to view the form.

The Center for Financial and Consumer Outreach will once again be holding its High School Symposium Event in May of 2012.  On May 16th and 17th, hundreds of high school students from all over Western Pennsylvania will come together at Penn State Erie, the Behrend College to participate in  the 2nd Annual High School Symposium. This is an event you won't want your students to miss.

For more information on last year's event, Click Here.

If you have not already "liked" the Center for Financial and Consumer Outreach, you may want to in order to stay up to date on what the CFCO is doing.  New outreach initiatives, CFCO events, and the latest in financial news are all posted regularly on our Facebook page in an effort to keep consumers informed.  This month, each person who likes the CFCO will be entered in a drawing to win a $20 Walmart gift card.

To "like," search "The Center for Financial and Consumer Outreach," or click here.

New! Innovative Educator

 A Monthly Spotlight on Innovative Educators  

This academic year the CFCO would like to recognize innovative educators who go above and beyond in terms of educating their students about financial literacy topics. Each month this column will spotlight a different educator, who will not only receive the recognition in the CFCO's e-newsletter, but also a $10 Fandango gift card and a certificate for their achievement. 

The CFCO recognizes that teachers work very hard with limited resources, and as a result those who go above and beyond should be recognized. We are now seeking nominations for any educators that you feel are deserving of some extra recognition due to their commitment to educating their students about financial literacy topics, as well as their innovative approaches to implement financial education in their classrooms.  You may nominate an educator, or if you are an educator, you may nominate yourself for this award.

Please email all nominations, including a short description of why your nominee should be recognized to cfco@psu.edu, and look for the first Innovative Educator in the November issue of the CFCO's e-news!

This month, in honor of October being Credit Awareness Month, the CFCO's Mindful Money e-feature will address the topic of credit.  Jim Jackson, a business banker with Marquette Savings Bank, will be lending his expertise on credit for the October issue. For more information on this month's expert, visit the CFCO's Ask-an-Expert page, or simply click here. Stay tuned so you don't miss this expert advice.

If you have not yet subscribed, and would like to begin receiving the monthly Mindful Money e-feature,simply click here.

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CFCO Homepage

Our new website is equipped with everything that you need to set out on the road to becoming financially savvy!

On our new site, you will find links to current financial news, a background on our center, a list of our current programs complete with a program request form, and our contact information.

Join the Conversation!

In honor of October being Credit Awareness Month, we want to know: 

Do you know your credit score?

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Additional Resources

CFCO's Financial Calculators:

Saving for a Goal

Back to School Budget

My Bonus After Taxes

Save A Million Dollars

Mortgage Payment

For more information and more financial calculators, visit the CFCO's website here.