BYU Finance Web Site to Assist in Planning

PROVO, Utah — Jan 11, 2008 — During every transition of life, personal finances play an influential role in deciding goals for the future. In an effort to provide families and individuals with the tools and resources necessary to obtain financial freedom, the Marriott School of Management has introduced a personal finance Web site designed to help users at every stage of financial knowledge.

“A solid understanding of basic financial principles plays an important role in the well-being of individuals and families,” says Ned C. Hill, dean of the Marriott School of Management. “This project is one of our many efforts to increase financial literacy and self-reliance among our students as well as families and friends outside the university.”

The Web site, located at personalfinance.byu.net, is divided both into lessons and courses of study. The lessons deliver topically condensed curriculum based on the financial knowledge level of participants. As an alternative, the courses of study are each designed for the life stage or interests of participants. For example, the beginning courses are intended for high school students and college freshmen, while the advanced courses focus on the entire financial planning process, including retirement planning and investing. The advanced course also provides the complete college course and manual used by Marriott School students. Each of the courses is founded on the principle of setting goals and is designed to help participants obtain them.

“Once people determine their goals, we give them the tools to achieve them and keep their personal finances in order,” says Bryan Sudweeks, the principal Web site developer and Marriott School associate professor of business management. “We want to help people put foundations to their dreams.”

Web site visitors can access individual lessons and manuals based on their own financial knowledge and course level. Shortened lessons and PowerPoint presentations are also available for family activities and for teachers who would like to incorporate the topics into their curriculum. As part of the advanced course of study, participants may download the complete college manual used by MBA students in Sudweeks’ personal financial planning course.

Each course requires participants to complete a financial plan assignment. At the end of the course, the assignments are compiled into a personal financial plan, a tool designed to lead to economic self- reliance and financial freedom.

“This program has helped me make strategic choices on future financial decisions,” says James Pierce, a senior majoring in finance from Pleasant Grove, Utah who assisted in the review process of the Web site. “I now know what to expect in my future.”

The Marriott School is located at Brigham Young University, the largest privately owned, church-sponsored university in the United States. The school has nationally recognized programs in accounting, business management, public management, information systems and entrepreneurship. The school’s mission is to prepare men and women of faith, character and professional ability for positions of leadership throughout the world. Approximately 3,000 students are enrolled in the Marriott School’s graduate and undergraduate programs.