Standard curriculum design assumes learning moves in a straight line. Module one, then module two, then module three, each building cleanly on the last. That is not what I’ve watched […]
The Debt That Was Never a Choice
Some of the residents who come through Fresh Start Housing arrive already carrying debt they never agreed to. Pogrebin et al. (2014) documented this precisely for returning citizens: parole fees, […]
Numeracy vs. genuine financial literacy
Foundations: Two Kinds of NumeracyThere are two very different things people mean when they say “numeracy,” and financial literacy programs almost never distinguish between them. Merriam-Webster (2023) defines numeracy as […]
Whose Knowledge Counts
Fricker (2007) describes something called epistemic injustice, the harm done when prejudice causes someone’s testimony to be dismissed, or when a conceptual gap prevents someone from being able to articulate […]
Four Hundred People Over Seventeen Years
I get asked sometimes why I lean on phenomenology, a fairly unfamiliar word to bring into a conversation about financial literacy, rather than just saying “we listen to our residents.” […]
An Unexamined Assumption
Most financial literacy programs are built on an assumption nobody bothers to state out loud: that financial literacy is primarily a technical competency, numerical reasoning, budgeting calculations, understanding financial products […]
The Eviction Record
Story from the field: a real disconnect between curriculum and survival need. Anchored to: resident evaluation quote about needing housing help despite already knowing how to budget Before we redesigned […]
Three People, Three Definitions, Same Word
Picture three case managers in three different offices, each trying to do right by their clients. One works from the OECD’s definition of financial literacy: knowledge and understanding of financial […]
35% of Our Residents Have College Degrees
Here’s a number that should unsettle anyone who thinks financial literacy education is primarily about closing a knowledge gap: at Fresh Start Housing, roughly 35% of the residents who come […]
Why ‘budgeting skills’ isn’t the same as financial literacy.
“Janet’s 98th Percentile” When Janet entered our transitional housing program, she had a bachelor’s degree in business administration and fifteen years of corporate accounting experience. She could calculate compound interest […]