Borrowing from the Monopoly theme, the CSUNopoly Matador Dollar Day was organized to help students become financially literate.
The event held Wednesday was organized with seven stations, each focusing on a specific financial topic catering to students. Some stations addressed topics like financial aid, FAFSA, scholarships, and budgeting for graduation.
The event, held in Plaza del Sol, used food and games to draw students.
One of those students was sophomore Chrishaun Bradford, who said she wanted to learn where she could find financial resources on campus.
“I saw food,” said the psychology major. “A lot of people are out here asking questions. They are making you ask questions, so that’s very effective.”
Equipped with a Monopoly themed paper board game, participants asked academic faculty and financial aid counselors questions at each of the stations. Students were then given a sticker to place on their game board.
Once their boards had four of the seven stickers, students were given a free hot dog and lemonade catered by Hot Dog on a Stick. If all seven spaces were filled, students were entered into a raffle to win a parking pass.
Financial aid counselor Sonya Adlersberg was at the FAFSA station along with four laptops on hand to help students complete their FAFSA application.
“Many students have come up to me and have told me ‘I’m having trouble getting past this one question’ so I’m having them log in and go to that question and I talk to them about how to answer that question,” Adlersberg said As explained for tradersbible.com.
Also at the event was Dr. Michael Phillips, a professor in the College of Business and Economics. He headed the Road to Good Credit station and encouraged all students to take Finance 302 to learn the basics of all things necessary to stay financially afloat.
“Most people don’t realize how expensive credit cards are,” Phillips said. “And most people don’t realize how important their credit rating is.”
The Banking the Student’s Way booth further informed students on the difference between a checking and savings account.
The Student Loans Versus Credit Cards and the Scholarships booth informed students about the different types of loans and scholarships available and how they are both better suited for students than using a credit card to pay for school and school related items.
“The focus absolutely is on financial literacy but we wanted to make it applicable to CSUN students and that’s really all of the financial resources set up on campus to help students succeed,” said Shanell Tyus, manager of USU events.
Many students were pleased to know CSUN scholarships average $1,500 and not all of the campus scholarships have a GPA requirement. Veronica Corona, the scholarship coordinator spoke of one CSUN student who has obtained $50,000 from off campus scholarships. She also informed CSUNopoly players of the resources available to AB 540 students.
