About the Project

to meet the rising need for unbiased financial education and information for underserved Montanans, the Montana State Library will launch a financial literacy project to connect Montanans with helpful and reliable, unbiased financial information and resources through their local libraries.  

State level partners will collaborate with the Montana State Library staff on training for library staff, financial literacy resource kits, curriculum, and marketing resources.  Financial literacy education will be provided to librarians and then to Montanans.  

Part 1: Librarian Training

At the Montana Library Association conference in Billings, Montana State University Extension Solid Finances Team will provide the initial training.  An additional training by MSU Extension for librarians is scheduled in May in Miles City.  Additional state-level partners including First Interstate Bank and the Montana Attorney General's Office of Consumer Protection will provide training during Money Smart Week to Montanans at their local libraries.  

Librarian Training Calendar

Wednesday, March 29, 2017, 1 – 4 p.m.

Montana Library Association Conference, Billings

Solid Finances Webinar Series: A Useful Financial Literacy Resource

Presenter:  Joel Schumacher

Northern Hotel:  2nd Floor, Hart-Albin Room

CE:  Library Services to the Public

 

This workshop provides an overview of MSU Extension’s Solid Finances program. The series is a free webinar series targeting working adults. Participants will learn: 1) what resources are available through Solid Finances 2) potential target audiences and 3) methods libraries can utilize Solid Finances in their communities.  MSU Extension will also provide to participants a large collection of financial literacy books for their collection and marketing materials to be used in libraries to promote the collection, including banners, bookmarks, and more. 

 

Tuesday, May 23, 2017, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Sleep Inn and Suites, Miles City

Promoting Financial Wellness in Your Community

Presenter: Joel Schumacher

CE: Library Services to the Public

This workshop will improve your knowledge of financial literacy resources that are available to librarians.  Additionally, it will promote ideas of how to offer financial education without being a financial expert.  If financial literacy collections and marketing materials remain from the MLA training, these will be distributed to attendees at this session.  Registration is required but there is no cost and travel expenses will be reimbursed. 

For more information or to register, contact Joel Schumacher at jschumacher@montana.edu or by phone at (406) 994-6637. 

More trainings will be scheduled.  

Part 2: Resources to Libraries

Montana State University Extension is providing extensive financial literacy content for libraries that attend training to include in their permanent collection.  Additionally, MSU Extension will also purchase these titles for permanent inclusion in MontanaLibrary2Go.  These books include:

Adult Books

 

Why Didn’t They Teach Me This in School?

Cary Siegel

The 5 Years Before You Retire

Emily Guy Birken

How to Retire the Cheapskate Way

Jeff Yeager

The Behavior Gap: Simple Ways to Stop Doing Dumb Things with Money

Carl Richards

The Ultimate Cheapskate’s Road Map to True Riches

Jeff Yeager

The Bogleheads’ Guide to Retirement Planning

Taylor Larimore, Mel Lindauer, Richard A. Ferri, Laura F. Dogu

Get a Financial Life: Personal Finance In Your Twenties and Thirties

Beth Kobliner Shaw

Financial Literacy for Millennials: A Practical Guide to Managing Your Financial Life for Teens, College Students, and Young Adults

Andrew Smith

How to Manage Your Money When You Don't Have Any

Erik Wecks

Financial Advice for Blue Collar America

Kathryn Hauer

Less Than an NSF Fee: The ABCs of Financial Literacy

LaToya D. Cheek

Simple Savings: 274 Money-Saving Tips That Will Help You Save $1,000 or More Every Month

Matthew Paulson, Toi Williams, Rebecca McKeever

The Missing Semester: Your financial choices have Consequences. Will you Choose Wisely?

Matt Kabala and Gene Natali Jr.

The Prosperous Retirement: Guide to the New Reality

Michael K. Stein

How to Make Your Money Last: The indispensable Retirement Guide

Jane Bryant Quinn

How to retire happy: The 12 most important decisions you must make before you retire

Stan Hinden

IRAs, 401(k)s & Other Retirement Plans: Strategies for Taking your Money Out

Twila Slesnick and John Suttle

The Ten-Year Turnaround: Transform Your Personal Finances and Achieve Financial Freedom in The Next Ten Years

Matthew Paulson

The Retirement Savings Time Bomb . . . and How to Defuse It: A Five-Step Action Plan for Protecting Your IRAs, 401(k)s, and Other Retirement Plans from Near Annihilation by the Taxman

Ed Slott

Repair Your Credit Like the Pros: How credit attorneys and certified consultants legally delete bad credit and restore your good name

Carolyn Warren

   

Children’s Books

 

Money, Money, Honey Bunny!

Marilyn Sadler

Alexander, Who Used to Be Rich Last Sunday

Judith Viorst

The Berenstain Bears’ Dollars and Sense

Stan & Jan Berenstain

 

Part 3: Library Patron Training

During Money Smart Week, April 22 – 29, 2017, state-level partners will offer trainings in libraries across the state directly to library patrons. 

Your local First Interstate Bank will come to your library and provide training and other financial literacy materials on a range of topics.  Librarians must contact their local First Interstate Bank directly and ask them to come offer a training.  First Interstate Bank offices have been made aware of this arrangement and look forward to working with libraries across the state. 

Additionally, the Montana Attorney General’s Office of Consumer Protection is willing to travel to libraries to offer training to Montana library patrons.  All presentations are provided free of charge.  Presentations consist of general Office of Consumer Protection outreach, but can also include specific subjects, such as current scams or identity theft; the Office of Consumer Protection can customize according to audience.  Because of budget constraints, the Office of Consumer Protection is not able to fulfill every request received for presentations. To request a trainer from the Office of Consumer Protection office to visit your library, please sign up here.