Rep. Prince Chestnut recently sponsored a bill that would allow local school boards to offer a life skills elective course for students in grades 6-12.

The life skills curriculum would include personal finance literacy as well as the following:

Savings, including emergency funds, purchases and wealth building; understand investments, wealth building and college planning, car leasing, co-signing a loan, debt avoidance, consumer awareness of the power of marketing on purchasing decisions; how to establish a credit score; how to develop a plan to deal with creditors and avoid bankruptcy; financial responsibility and money management, income and career decisions, including career choices that match personality styles and career goals, job search strategies, cover letters, CV and interview techniques.

The bill would also address other issues:

Personal rights, including state election laws and procedures, voter registration requirements, the electoral process, acquisition and voting by mail, party structures, and responsibilities for citizen participation in government and in elections; and a study of the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights; Good civic education which includes honesty, respect for the authority and property of others, and personal responsibility for obligations to family and community; instructions on interacting with law enforcement and judicial authorities, including, but not limited to, legal process and court system, law enforcement procedures, appropriate actions to take by drivers, passengers and law enforcement during a traffic stop or other incident where law enforcement is involved; and discussion of deterrence and prevention of gang and youth violence.

“These are skills that can make a difference in the lives of young people because they are skills they will need to learn and use for the rest of their lives,” Chestnut said in a message to the media. “With recent societal issues, we need to better equip our young people to succeed. When they succeed, we are all better off as a society and the future is bright.”