Each year, NGPF Fellows have the option to award a Personal Finance Student of the Year Award' to a student who has demonstrated outstanding contributions in their personal finance class during the school year. We'll showcase one student each Wednesday, Thursday and Friday right here on the blog throughout the coming summer weeks. 

Students are selected based on the following criteria:

• Student has taken a personal finance class in the 2019-2020 school year that was taught by the NGPF Fellow who nominated them
• Student demonstrated outstanding performance in the class based on participation/academic excellence/passion for the subject matter

Congratulations this Friday go to:

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Student: Halle Christensen

Teacher: Renee Hochandel

School: Olathe South Senior High, Olathe (KS)

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“Personal Finance is a great class that teaches key money management skills for life. I feel it should be mandatory for all high school students because it helps prepare for the future by covering topics such as budgeting, saving for retirement, and maintaining good credit. Personal Finance has helped open the door to financial conversations with my parents and planning for my college expenses. I will be attending college in the fall to pursue a degree and eventually work as an actuary. I wasn't even aware of this field until I took this class! Taking personal Finance was one of the best things I could have done to help prepare for my financial future!”

-Halle Christensen

About the Author

Yanely Espinal

Born and raised by Dominican, immigrant parents in Brooklyn, Yanely is a proud product of NYC public schools. She graduated from Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School in 2007 before going on to receive her bachelor's degree at Brown University in 2011. As a Teach For America corps member, Yanely taught third and fourth grade in Canarsie, Brooklyn. She received her master's degree from Relay Graduate School of Education in 2013. She spends her spare time making YouTube videos about personal finance on her channel, MissBeHelpful. Yanely also loves to dance, sew, paint, listen to podcasts, and babysit her 10 nieces and nephews!