Lincoln Standing Bear students learned noteworthy knowledge about their financial futures during a music-themed school event in September. Members of the rock band Gooding provided chord-filled insights about credit scores, savings accounts and debt payments.

“Financial habits, just like other habits, are formed at a young age,” said Jacob Shaffer, chair of the business department at Standing Bear. “Those habits will persist regardless of how much money someone makes, so it’s important for students to build a rock-solid foundation to lean on as they keep gaining financial responsibilities and whether they have $10 or $10,000.” Shaffer said he was impressed with Gooding’s message to students at the concert made possible through leaders at Standing Bear, the Nebraska Council on Economic Education at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and the Funding the Future organization.

“I learned about what would happen if I put away only $50 a week into a Roth IRA account, which you can make money off of your own money with compound interest,” said Hailey, a student who attended. “By the time you are ready to retire, you will have close to $650,000 in that account to use in your retirement.”

A personal finance course is now mandatory for all high school students in Nebraska, so lead singer and guitarist Steve Gooding encouraged everyone to fine-tune their financial skills. “You have the best thing in the world. You have time, especially being freshmen and sophomores,” said Gooding. “If you start saving at your age, there is no limit to what you can accomplish.”