JPMorgan Chase hosts Back-To-School event in Summerhill

JPMorgan Chase hosted a back-to-school student and family event at the Summerhill Community Center on Saturday, July 13. In order to encourage adequate financial habits, the bank’s community team held five insightful workshops ranging from investing 101 to building and understanding credit.

Community residents of different ages, races and economic status gathered in the center for the company’s second annual back-to-school event. According to JPMorgan Chase Community and Business Development Managing and Divisional Director Bridget Killings, Chase was very intentional about choosing workshops, with the goal of ensuring that people of all ages could gain value from them. The premise of the event is that one is never too young nor old to attain financial literacy.

“What we love about today is that parents are bringing their kids in for this education, so not only are the parents getting an education, but the kids are too. And once they leave, the parents can continue this education at home so it’s applicable to all aspects of life,” Killings said.

Black and brown communities statistically do not discuss finances at home as thoroughly as other communities. This event offered them the opportunity to acquire new information in order to effectively converse, and hold those kitchen table discussions at home.

“You don’t want your kids to grow up struggling, so it’s best to teach them about finance and how to manage their money at a young age,” community resident Annesheia Hill said.

The Emerging 100 Atlanta partnered with Chase when coordinating this event, as their mission aligns with the doings of the banking company. They aim to serve as a reflection of not only the Black youth, but of the community as a whole.

“We have an obligation, and it is tied to our mission to serve the community, to be of assistance and to inspire,” Emerging 100 Atlanta Co-Chair Daniel Farr said. “What they see is what they become. We want to ensure that we are serving alongside them, never in front, never behind, but always beside.”

To lighten the back-to-school shopping load, Chase gave away 400 backpacks, along with school supplies. This provides parents the option to preserve their funds and apply the financial advice they learned during these sessions to invest in themselves, as well as their children.

“I’m a mother of five and I know back to school season can be very stressful and our goal today is to lighten parents’ loads. It means the world to us to be able to support and provide for our community,”  JPMorgan Chase Executive and Market Director of Banking Ladonna Murphy said.

The company’s community team held a carnival style event outside of the center with games and treats appealing to the youth: popcorn, Jenga, Connect 4, ice cream and music. Finally, Atlanta Hawks mascot, Harry the Hawk, arrived to interact with the children and take photos with the guests.

“I think financial literacy classes are important for building generational wealth, and I didn’t really know how to navigate teaching that to my children, so I thought it was a great opportunity for us to come and take advantage of a free resource in our neighborhood,” Summerhill resident Miesha Lanes said.

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