The Wharton School Helps High School Students Appreciate Finance and Future Growth
When Erika H. James, dean of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, spoke with more than 90 high school students and teachers from New York City public schools who were visiting Wharton’s campus on November 8, 2024 (pictured above), she emphasized the value of developing a strong network of peers and professionals: “Build those relationships to help you navigate new pathways,” she urged.
Getting Past the Hard Part
As the day unfolded, the students, all participants in Wharton Global Youth Program’s online Embedded Pre-baccalaureate Essentials of Personal Finance course, began acting on Dean James’s advice — exploring the Wharton campus during a scavenger hunt, talking with new friends, asking questions of the team members from Wharton Global Youth and the National Education Equity Lab, and feeling empowered by their academics and also what was, for many, their first college visit outside their state.
“I feel like you need to have an open mind to everything,” said Joley, a sophomore from Fordham High School for the Arts in the Bronx who, along with her friend and classmate Kihanny, was excited to see Wharton for the first time. “When you have an open mind, you can do anything. I wasn’t open to the personal finance class at first because I thought it was going to be so hard. But the concepts aren’t hard. You just have to do the work and listen to what is being taught. Finance is a common knowledge that everyone should learn.”
“It’s not about how much money you have. It’s about how you use that money and how that money works for you in the ways that you want it to.” –Erika H. James, Dean of the Wharton School
Rehan E., a student from Long Island City High School in New York, was particularly grateful for his new personal finance knowledge as he looked toward his life after high school.
“As a senior, I’m applying to colleges while also learning about student loans and how you can pay for college. That’s something that is helping me right away,” noted Rehan. “I’m applying as an engineering major. But what I love about Wharton’s personal finance class is that although it can help business majors, this is something you can apply in your own life as well – if you’re an engineer, if you’re going for law or medicine, you can take this class and use what you learned.” Rehan has applied to eight schools, including Penn.
Struggle Can Be Part of Success
High school teachers serving as chaperones for the campus visit from all three schools – also including Harlem Children’s Promise — reflected on aspects of the Embedded Pre-baccalaureate opportunity for their students. Sonja Gracy, an instructor at Fordham High School for the Arts, has co-taught in the Embedded Pre-baccalaureate program Grit Lab 101, led by Wharton and Penn professor, Angela Duckworth.
Gracy was impressed by her students’ level of commitment when she guided them through the Wharton-led online classes and assignments in 2023. “They were fascinated by the concept that you could have struggle and that struggle could be a component to success,” she said. “I appreciated watching my students find the course valuable and come to class invested every day. They were very interested in the material.”
Exposure to different approaches to learning, as well as new professionals and career paths, said Dr. James, can open your eyes to all the available options. As teachers and students boarded the buses to head home on November 8, they thought about the dean’s message of personal growth through opportunities and experiences. “I think the Wharton Global Youth Program helps you prepare for college coursework before you enter college,” reflected Rehan. “And this campus – it’s amazing.”