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• Secretary Rokita is Indiana 's chief investment and fraud regulator. Investor education is an increasingly important part of securities regulation in Indiana and across the entire United States . A proactive approach to law enforcement, investor education becomes even stronger when combined with financial literacy efforts. Utilizing both educational approaches helps Hoosiers be proactive with their financial decisions, rather than reacting after problems have occurred.
  
  
• The Secretary of State's office conducted an investment literacy survey in January 2006 among 1,000 Indiana households. It showed that many Hoosiers with investments don't properly understand how they are registered, and many people are so confused about how to manage their money that they are intimidated by the idea of investing altogether.
  
  
• Teenagers and young adults often find themselves in high debt with little knowledge of basic savings and budgeting concepts. Forty percent of Americans spend 110 percent of their income. And not surprisingly, most adults in the United States only save 1.5 percent each year.
  
  
• We have a responsibility to not only educate Hoosiers about the potential risks associated with investing, but also to provide the tools they need to understand basic finances so that when they feel adequately prepared to start investing, they have the funds available to do. The younger we start getting this message across, the better.
  
  
• More college students drop out of college because of financial, rather than academic, reasons. As we teach young adults to engage in our economy by becoming consumers, we must also arm them with the proper information on making smart decisions about their money and spending habits. Without first understanding the basic building blocks of finances, young adults will not be prepared to make complex investment decisions.
  
  
• That's why we have created the "Living on Your Own: A Crash Course in Cash" program for college students. It is a financial literacy program aimed at educating students about what to expect financially in the real world, as well as how to ward off fraudulent investment offers from con artists.
  
  

  •  The habits and skills college students learn in this program will continue to develop over the course of their lives, helping them be smart investors because they will be armed with information concerning con artists and investment fraud. Lessons learned now concerning basic investment skills will provide significant pay-off, especially in their later years.

• “Living on Your Own” is available for colleges across Indiana . To request a visit to your campus, please contact Bethany Derringer, Director of Investor Education, at bderringer@sos.IN.gov or by phone at 317.233.3985.

   

• "Living on Your Own" is part of Indiana Investment Watch, a multifaceted investor education program created by the Indiana Secretary of State's office. To learn more about Indiana Investment Watch, please go online to www.IndianaInvestmentWatch.com .
  
  
• Neither program is funded at the expense of taxpayers. The Secretary of State's investor education program is funded entirely by the state's securities enforcement fund, which contains money collected from settlements in securities fraud cases.
  

•  "This is a great idea for college students - it's about time someone informed students about real life finances."

•  "It was honest, open, and real and not about the most idealistic situation, but about what a real life average student goes through!"

•  "I've been looking forward to something like this that is applicable and practical!"

•  "It was very helpful and eye-opening to see a budget broken down so specifically."

•  "I've already started this process with apartments and budgets, and I found the information very representative of my personal research."

• Out of the 39 students who took an evaluative survey about the presentation, 36 rated the overall effectiveness of the content and presentation as being of "superior" or "good" quality.
  

  •  All 39 students surveyed said they believed this program was extremely relevant and beneficial to any college student in Indiana , regardless of the university they attended.
  

  •  All 39 students surveyed said they would recommend the series to a classmate or friend, based upon the information they learned that evening.
  

  •  When asked about their favorite part of the presentation, 16 of the 39 students surveyed mentioned that learning how to create a personal budget and seeing the budget of an actual recent graduate as being the most beneficial information of the evening.
  

  •  Eight students noted that the most startling piece of information was learning how small expenses like a daily gourmet coffee can quickly add up to a large amount of money over a year. Seven students mentioned seeing a paycheck broken down piece by piece taught them the most.

• No one hands you a financial guidebook for life. Without the necessary financial tools, the further in debt our society and youth will sink.
  
  
• Learning how to manage your money and protect your investments is a vital part of the post-college young adult's personal education.
  
  
• The younger individuals learn to manage their money, the better financially prepared they will be to maintain the type of lifestyle they desire.
  
  
• This program takes a preventative approach to fraud awareness and financial education. By learning about investing and how to avoid fraud at an earlier age in life, individuals will be better protected against con artists in the future.

© 2006, Office of the Indiana Secretary of State – All rights reserved