Our Foster Youth Services Unit recently hosted the engaging "Bite of Reality" event, providing an immersive financial literacy experience for foster care students across Los Angeles County. The students were assigned a virtual persona complete with a fictional occupation, salary, credit score, spouse and child, student loan debt, credit card debt and medical insurance payments. They were then presented with various purchasing decisions, such as buying a home, transportation, childcare, food and other daily needs. They navigated through purchasing decisions, learning to prioritize essentials while ensuring their families' needs were met. 

The program, designed and taught by Schools First Credit Union, offered a unique and practical educational opportunity for the students to better understand financial management, including budgeting and saving. Following the exercise, the students got to reflect together on their challenges and what they learned over lunch. They got to go home with newfound insights, resources and tools to help them navigate their financial futures more confidently.  

A special thank you to the students, chaperones, volunteers, partner agencies, LACOE staff and of course Schools First Credit Union who helped make this event happen to celebrate the start of National Foster Care Awareness Month.