By Luke Minor, Director of Washington State’s College Savings Plans (WA529)

November 5, 2024

With Halloween behind us, one would normally ditch the thrills and chills and go all in on sweater weather and copious quantities of pumpkin spice-flavored whatnots. But this November, the fright fest continues for me in light of a recent and shocking revelation…

I was at a financial empowerment conference last month focused on increasing banking access for underserved individuals and communities. It was a powerful and eye-opening event that gave me a lot to consider in how well my organization supports Washington residents in saving for future education and career readiness training. But something I learned that day continues to haunt me – when my daughter turns five in just three short months, her spending habits will become chiseled in stone for the rest of her life and there’s nothing I can do to stop it.

In the modern misinformation age, I was naturally skeptical and dug a little deeper. It turns out that this dynamic has been studied and findings suggest that children begin developing associations with money and spending habits at a very young age. And interestingly, it appears that such habits do not necessarily reflect those of their parents. So, um, yeah…my almost five-year-old, who is already gaining independence at an alarming rate, will soon be destined for a life of frivolous indulgence or miserly self-deprivation and I will have no say in the matter. As Scooby Doo’s pal Shaggy would say “Zoinks!”

Of course, I’m being alarmist and am at risk of spreading my own misinformation, so let me set the record straight. While sobering, I am treating this new point of learning as an opportunity to reexamine my own financial priorities and help my daughter develop a healthy relationship with money. And importantly, I am inspired to work harder in helping financially empower families and individuals throughout my state and across the country.

The good news is that collectively, organizations across sectors and localities already have countless resources and policy interventions to help. The challenge is how to best knit together this patchwork so we can aid as many individuals and families as possible in their journey towards building their education, financial security, and generational wealth. We discussed this at length at the conference mentioned above, and were able to tease out several actionable steps we can take:

  • Become better storytellers so we can deliver information to people in relevant, culturally appropriate ways;
  • Find trusted messengers who can aid us in building rapport with diverse and disparate communities;
  • Meet people where they are at rather than trying to entice them into our predefined structures;
  • Help people navigate complex systems that can present barriers to their financial well-being; and
  • Build our village of like-minded organizations who are striving to make an impact in their respective communities.

This speaks to the immense value and impact that organizations such as our very own CSPN, ASPN, and NAST wield. For years, I have marveled at the collective power our association to share best practices, build cross-sector relationships, and advocate for positive change at the systems level. My call to action for all of us within CSPN is to build on this already strong foundation. Let’s keep up the great work, grow our villages, and not be overcome with same fear I started off this conversation with! Here are some ideas to get us going:

  • Dust off those business cards you’ve collected over the past few months, follow-up on those LinkedIn invitations, and unbury those introductory emails;
  • Find new-to-you networks such as financial planners associations, asset building coalitions, and scholarship foundations; and
  • Keep trying new things – remember the power of pilot programs.

As that cliché and sometimes cringy motivational posters in office walls across the country persistently remind us: “Teamwork makes the dream work!”

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About the Author

Luke Minor is the Director of Washington State’s College Savings Plans (WA529), which include the GET Prepaid Tuition Program and the DreamAhead College Investment Plan. Since 1998, tens of thousands of students have used more than $2 billion of their WA529 savings to attend colleges in all 50 states and at least 15 foreign countries. In his free time, Luke enjoys getting outside to hike, ride bikes, and even splash in a puddle or two with his wife, rambunctious four-year-old, and young-at-heart dog.