OHIO — A program aimed at boosting student financial literacy across Central Ohio and beyond is helping to change the narrative and legacy students leave behind. 

What You Need To Know

  • The Lawrence Funderburke Youth Organization has been in operation for more than two decades
  • There’s an emphasis on teaching Black and brown communities financial literacy to set them up for success
  • Funderburke and his wife are working with hundreds of kids this summer

The current seven-week program engages high school students from across Columbus and teaches them the fundamentals of investing, building life goals and personal branding. That’s aside from learning how to develop business ideas and pitching those ideas and thinking critically about all the decisions they make. 

Marcaela Glenn, a rising sophomore, said what she’s learned so far has put things in perspective in that now figuring out how to pay for college and retirement is in her top five most important things to accomplish.

That’s besides being able to leave an inheritance.

“I do care a lot about my family, so it would be nice if I’m getting something to be able to give back to them,” Glenn said.

Understanding how what they’re learning serves as building blocks to their future, said student Ekoute Epane, it’s boosted his confidence, especially when it comes to starting a business.

“Anything is possible, the more creative you can be, the more money you can make,” Epane said.

Former NBA player and founder of the program Lawrence Funderburke said often Black and brown communities struggle with finances because they don’t know the terminology, which makes it a challenge to understand the depths of how it works especially when it comes to investing and saving for retirement.

“If you don’t understand the terms. How are you going to be able to play the wealth game?” he said. 

He also noted accessibility being an issue.

“When kids don’t have access, they can create excess. And if you don’t have excess, then you can’t have success,” Funderburke said. “A lot of times our community, we’re very entertainment focused instead of empowerment focused.”

He added that if you teach kids the nuances of things, and connect the relevant dots, they can learn anything. 

This is also why Funderburke focuses on meeting kids where they are, introducing them to things outside of their neighborhood, and showing them what their future could look like.