Take Charge America® Educational Director Elected Vice President of Arizona Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy
Phoenix, Ariz. (February 10, 2004)...Michael Sullivan, Ph.D., director of education with Take Charge America (TCA), has been elected vice president of the Arizona Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy.
The Arizona Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy, which is a part of the national Jump$tart program, seeks to improve the personal financial literacy of Arizona citizens by focusing on youth and through promoting the teaching of personal finance in all K-12 schools. For more information please see www.jumpstart.org.
Sullivan is a founding member of the Coalition’s Arizona chapter. “I am excited about helping bring this endeavor to Arizona,” says Sullivan. “The Arizona Jump$tart Coalition’s goal of supporting public policy that promotes the teaching of personal finance for K-12 students is one that I am actively involved in through Take Charge America – it was a natural fit for me.”
The Arizona Coalition’s first project will be coordinating the participation of 40 Arizona schools in a survey that is conducted nationally with public high schools evaluating the personal financial literacy of 12th graders. This will be the first time Arizona schools have participated in the national survey. The study is being carried out by the Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy in partnership with the National Business Education Association (NBEA). Results from the study will allow the Coalition to identify curriculum to address weaknesses in student’s personal financial literacy. Results will be available later this spring.
Michael Sullivan joined Take Charge America (TCA) as Director of Education in early 2003. He is involved in the development of tools for educating consumers on personal financial matters and directs the selection and production of all instructional materials used by TCA. He created the TCA e-book, Take Charge of Personal Finance, a resource for the personal finance course taught to employees and designed to interact with Take Charge America software, which focuses on savings and debt management. Sullivan also serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the TCA Institute for Consumer Financial Education and Research at the University of Arizona in Tucson.
Prior to joining Take Charge America, Mike served as executive director of the Agency for Instructional Technology, a nonprofit US-Canadian education organization, and as director of Strategic Planning and Development at UNISYS Corporation. He held the position of assistant state superintendent of Instructional Technology in Maryland, established the Maryland Educational Technology Network and directed the state education foundation. He also has been a classroom teacher, university professor, and school district administrator. Sullivan has received many awards for his work, including the prestigious Peabody Award.
A graduate of Bowling Green (Ohio) State University, Mike earned his bachelor’s degree in English and Speech, and his master’s degree in curriculum development at Wright State University in Dayton. He earned his doctorate in instructional technology at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blackburg, VA.
About Take Charge America
Founded in 1987, Take Charge America, Inc. (TCA), formerly Credit Counselors of America, Inc. (CCOA), is a non-profit 501(c)(3) charitable organization headquartered in Phoenix, AZ. TCA is committed to helping consumers gain control of their finances and offers a variety of services including education, budget and financial counseling, and when necessary, debt management.
TCA also serves as an effective resource for the business community. We help financially distressed consumers re-organize their finances and return hundreds of millions of dollars annually to financial institutions, professional service providers, and businesses of all sizes and descriptions that may otherwise have been dishonored in bankruptcy. TCA’s diversified programs are utilized by tens of thousands of families and single men and women throughout the United States each year.