Wisconsin High School team wins the 2025 Varsity LifeSmarts National Championship  

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Media Contact: Lisa McDonald, Vice President of Communications, 202-207-2829  

Washington, DC – Today, Wisconsin’s Pewaukee High School students were crowned the 2025 Varsity LifeSmarts National Champions in Chicago, Illinois. Coached by Shawn Prell, the winning team consisted of Logan Nguyen, Max Smith, Ben Varner, Texas Maki, and Landon Pungarcher.   

Joining them in the final match was the North Dakota Sweepstakes 2 team. Coached by Dave Handt and Alesha Knudson, the team consisted of Charlie Enger, Andrian Davilov, Gracie Enger, Dakota Severance, and Rhea Haakenson.   

The 2025 Varsity LifeSmarts National Championship competition featured 46 teams from 35 states vying for the national title. LifeSmarts, a program of the National Consumers League (NCL), continues to provide students with the tools and knowledge needed to navigate today’s complex, global marketplace.    

“Congratulations to the Pewaukee High School students on their victory,” said NCL CEO Sally Greenberg. “Your energy, brainpower, and teamwork truly blew everyone away. We are beyond proud of you and can’t wait to see all the amazing things you’ll accomplish next. Way to make Wisconsin shine!”   

LifeSmarts has empowered teens for 31 years, teaching vital skills like financial literacy to create savvy, market-ready consumers. High schools often miss these life lessons, but LifeSmarts ensures students are ready for college, careers, and independence.  

LifeSmarts sponsors include Amazon, Kenvue, Meta, AARP, American Express, Comcast NBCUniversal, FICO, Melaleuca – The Wellness Company, CBM Credit Education Foundation, Inc., SmartNews, and several state and local sponsors.       

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LifeSmarts: Learn it. Live it.   

LifeSmarts is a program of the National Consumers League. State coordinators run the programs on a volunteer basis. For more information, visit https://LifeSmarts.org or email lifesmarts@nclnet.org.  

LifeSmarts National Championship Coming to Chicago April 24 through 27

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Media Contact: Lisa McDonald, Vice President of Communications,202-207-2829  

Chicago, IL – The 2025 LifeSmarts National Championship will be held in Chicago from April 24-27. Located at the Chicago Marriott Downtown, Magnificent Mile, the competition will feature 46 teams from a total of 35 states vying for the national title. LifeSmarts, a program of the National Consumers League, continues to provide students with the tools and knowledge needed to navigate today’s complex, global marketplace.  

Students compete in six competition rounds, culminating in four teams competing on Sunday, April 27, to become the National Champions.

The quiz show format has students answering tough questions, such as:

A. What is the most common way to reduce radon levels in a home? (Environment) 

B. CERCLA is the name of the federal law that established which program? (Consumer Rights) 

C. How many calories are in one gram of fat? (Health) 

D. Because clipboard data is stored in RAM, what happens to it when you shut down your computer? (Technology) 

E. What does the “Rule of 72” calculate? (Personal Finance) 

“We are thrilled to bring the LifeSmarts National Championship to Chicago,” said NCL CEO Sally Greenberg. “LifeSmarts has empowered teens for over 30 years, teaching vital skills like financial literacy to create savvy, market-ready consumers. High schools often miss these life lessons, but LifeSmarts ensures students are ready for college, careers, and independence.”  

LifeSmarts contributors include Amazon, Kenvue, Meta, AARP, American Express, Comcast NBCUniversal, FICO, Melaleuca – The Wellness Company, CBM Credit Education Foundation, Inc., SmartNews, and several state and local sponsors.     

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LifeSmarts: Learn it. Live it.  

LifeSmarts is a program of the National Consumers League. State coordinators run the programs on a volunteer basis. For more information, visit https://LifeSmarts.org or email lifesmarts@nclnet.org.    

Answer key: 

  • A) Vent it outside B) Superfund C) Nine D) It is deleted E) How long it will take an investment to double in value, based on its rate of return 

NCL opposes effort to shutter ED and defund education 

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Media Contact: Lisa McDonald, Vice President of Communications, 202-207-2829

Last night, the Trump Administration began firing almost half of the U.S. Department of Education’s (ED) staff and kicked employees out of the DC office. President Trump and Education Secretary McMahon have made clear that this is only the beginning of their efforts to shut down ED entirely. With these most recent firings, ED is down to approximately 2,000 employees to handle a massive portfolio that includes administering billions of dollars in funding for rural and low-income public schools across the nation.

“The Education Department plays a critical role in our public education system despite being the smallest of the cabinet agencies,” said Eden Iscil, NCL Senior Public Policy Manager. “Weakening—or eliminating—the Department serves no purpose other than to defund our schools, allow for greater discrimination in education, and eliminate oversight of the private companies we pay to manage trillions of dollars in student loans. Leaders in Congress and the states must stand up and support the agency.”

With its already strained resources, ED enforces civil rights law, distributes billions of dollars to rural and low-income schools, and oversees trillions of dollars in aid and loans for higher education. The agency’s funding makes up less than 3% of the federal budget.

ED’s resources disproportionately go to states that largely voted for Republicans over Democrats in the last election. Mississippi, South Dakota, and Arkansas have some of the highest dependency on federal funding for their public schools, while states like New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut rely the least on ED.

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About the National Consumers League (NCL)   

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org. 

The power of polling: how data shapes campaigns and elections

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February 6, 2025: On this episode of NCL’s “We Can Do this” podcast, National Consumers League CEO Sally Greenberg speaks with Democratic pollster Anna Greenberg, PhD, a senior partner at the polling firm GQR. Sally and Anna discuss polling techniques and polling results leading up to the election of President Donald Trump in 2024.

Read more

NCL urges timely action to require standardized alcohol content, nutrition and allergen labeling on beer, wine, and distilled spirits products

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Media Contact: Lisa McDonald, Vice President of Communications, (202) 207-2829

Washington, DC – Having pressed the Treasury Department’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) for over two decades to require alcohol labeling on beer, wine, and distilled spirits products, the National Consumers League today called for an expedited process to finalize and implement a new TTB rulemaking that will give consumers the same important facts about the content of an alcoholic beverage that is now is readily available on all other beverages, food products, and dietary supplements.

TTB’s rulemaking, published in the Federal Register on January 17, 2025, includes two proposed rules, both of which are necessary for the 62 percent of adult Americans who drink to make responsible drinking decisions. The first rule would require a standardized label, similar to the Nutrition Facts label commonplace on food and beverage products, that tells consumers the percentage of alcohol per volume, the alcohol content in fluid ounces, and the calories, carbohydrates, fat, and protein per serving. The second rule requires listing allergens in the alcoholic beverage, which is important to the 33 million people in the US who have at least one food allergy. Currently, manufacturers of TTB-regulated beer, wine, and distilled spirits are not required to declare the presence of major allergens which are used as ingredients or processing agents.

Noting that overconsumption of alcohol is a costly public health problem that has become much worse in recent years, as alcohol-related deaths have risen substantially, NCL stated that the proposed labeling rules are long overdue to protect the health and safety of the public. According to the latest estimates, alcohol accounts for 30 percent of all traffic crash fatalities in the US, is a source of empty calories that contribute to obesity, and excessive drinking increases the risk of liver disease, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, alcohol use disorders, certain cancers, and severe injuries.

“While NCL is pleased that TTB published these labeling rules, the agency has a long history of asking for public comments, holding listening sessions, and publishing proposed alcohol labeling rules that are never finalized,” said Sally Greenberg, NCL’s CEO. “This is why we are pressing for an expedited process, because the health and safety of the public is at stake.”

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About the National Consumers League (NCL)

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization.  Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad.  For more information, visit nclnet.org.

Making consumers smarter through financial education

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Growing up, I had my own personal consumer advocate, my grandmother, Big Mama. She taught me to be a skeptical consumer and to watch out for the tricks and traps used to separate me from my hard-earned money.

Big Mama modeled the importance of saving and being a savvy shopper. She instilled in me the critical skills that I needed, which I have, in turn, passed on to readers of the personal finance column I’ve written for The Washington Post for nearly three decades.

However, not everyone has a Big Mama, and filling that role of protector has had to come down to organizations such as the National Consumers League (NCL). With the care and compassion of a loving grandmother or parent, NCL has developed many programs and educational tools to teach people to be smart consumers.

For example, NCL’s LifeSmarts program, which is aimed at teenagers, provides unbiased information to help them navigate an increasingly complicated and often financially treacherous world. All too often, people accumulate massive credit card debt or find themselves unable to manage their monthly expenses because they were never taught how to make smart financial decisions. NCL has filled that critical void.

As a consumer rights champion, NCL has been at the forefront of identifying and fighting the avalanche of sophisticated scams stealing billions of dollars from consumers. Fraud.org is an NCL project I’ve frequently relied on to inform readers of the latest scams and provide them with tips to protect themselves.

I couldn’t do what I do—inform the public— without the tireless efforts of NCL, which has been an ally for those who have been victimized, exploited, and treated unfairly.

The amount of false, inappropriate, and reckless personal finance information online makes it more difficult for consumers to know who to trust. Artificial Intelligence (AI) will make it harder for people to know the truth. This means that strong consumer advocacy is needed more than ever.

I celebrate and congratulate NCL for 125 years of being a Big Mama to the millions of people who need a champion. The financial well-being of so many people is infinitely better because of the work of NCL.

Team Pennsylvania from Dallas High School who won the 30th National LifeSmarts Championship in 2024

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Michelle Singletary has been a journalist and columnist for The Washington Post since 1992. She is the author of four books on personal finance and has won numerous awards for her work, including the Trumpeter Award in 2002. 

The U.S. Department of Education’s role is critical for consumers

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December 9, 2024

Media contact: National Consumers League – Lisa McDonald, lisam@nclnet.org, 202-207-2829

Washington, DC – The National Consumers League (NCL) rejects proposals to abolish the U.S. Department of Education (ED) and urges Members of Congress to strengthen the agency and its critically important role for consumers.

ED provides irreplaceable services for our public schools, alongside programs administered by other agencies like Head Start at the Department of Health and Human Services and the National School Lunch program at the Department of Agriculture. Despite making up only 3% of the federal budget, ED plays an outsized role in supporting K-12 and college education. Many underserved schools across the nation rely on ED’s Title I funding to continue operating a full range of educational and care services.

The US has long recognized a need for a limited but important federal role ineducation. Indeed, the original Department of Education was created in 1867 to collect information on schools and teaching that would help the States establish effective school systems. ED has evolved and changed with the times, but this early emphasis on getting vital information to teachers and education policymakers continues into the present.

Moreover, ED supports the essential role played by our public schools across America, schools that teach reading, writing, math and science, and are free to all students. The public school system represents the best of American democracy, fostering civic engagement and opportunity for all.

ED also pursues its twin goals of access and excellence through programs that cover every area of education and range from preschool education through postdoctoral research: including civil rights protections, Title IX rights, and  over $150 billion in new and consolidated loans annually. Without these loans, millions of students would not have access to higher education, so ED plays a truly essential consumer support role.

Finally, while ED’s programs and responsibilities have grown substantially over the years, the Department has the smallest staff of the 15 Cabinet agencies and has suffered funding cuts from Congress.

NCL calls on leaders across the political spectrum to reject proposals that would jeopardize the future of our nation’s children and instead focus on improving, refining, and supporting ED’s many positive contributions. NCL continues to advocate for policies to minimize the costs associated with seeking higher education, including legislation to bring the US in line with other developed nations by making college affordable for all.

Further reading

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About the National Consumers League (NCL) 

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

Harris Poll sounds alarm on financial literacy gap

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September 24, 2024

Media contact: National Consumers League – Lisa McDonald, lisam@nclnet.org, 202-207-2829

WASHINGTON, DC – The National Consumers League (NCL), founder of LifeSmarts, one of the premier youth consumer education programs in the country, is sounding the alarm on the urgent need for better financial education. Recent findings of an independent survey by The Harris Poll, recently commissioned by FICO, revealed a starling reality: over 74% of Americans think their current financial situation would improve if they had access to more personal finance resources and education, and 79% percent of Americans believe high schools should offer financial education. See the FICO study here.

“We are deeply concerned that one out of four younger Americans do not consider themselves to be financially literate,” says Sally Greenberg, NCL’s CEO. “We can guarantee any student who experiences the LifeSmarts curriculum and competes at our state and national championships will be better equipped to navigate financial decision-making throughout their adulthood.”

NCL has seen firsthand how concerns about financial stability can be addressed directly through creative programming offered through schools and community organizations, and the private and public sectors can do more to address the financial literacy gap. We literally can’t afford, as a nation, to wait until children become adults to start teaching them how to manage their finances,” says Greenberg. “They need to build their knowledge base, which will give them the power to control and take charge of the many financial decisions they will be called upon to make in adulthood. Our LifeSmarts stands ready to help in any way we can.”

NCL commends FICO for conducting this important research and for its leadership on financial literacy via its Score a Better Future and Score a Better Future Fundamentals program.  Key components of the Fundamentals curriculum have been incorporated into the LifeSmarts program, which serves more than 125,000 students and 3,000 educators around the country each year.

This October, NCL’s LifeSmarts curriculum will focus on credit education, which is one of the most  critical components of financial literacy. The new research finds that while nearly two-thirds of Gen Z adults (61%) believe their credit score is a fair representation of their overall financial health, fewer than half (46%) of young adults have checked their credit score in the past year. Nearly one in four (24%) are not sure where to find this information. A similar percentage (28%) say they lack the tools or knowledge to improve their credit score.

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 About the National Consumers League (NCL) 

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization. Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad. For more information, visit www.nclnet.org.

About LifeSmarts
The National Consumers League’s (NCL) youth consumer education program, LifeSmarts, was established in 1993 and today serves more than 125,000 middle and high school students and 3,000 educators across the country. Through LifeSmarts, students learn about real-life consumer issues in five topic areas: Health & Safety, Consumer Rights & Responsibilities, Personal Finance, Technology & Workforce Preparation, and the Environment. They compete to win prizes and scholarships at the Varsity National LifeSmarts Championships in April each year and the Junior Varsity National LifeSmarts Championship in May. NCL LifeSmarts is active in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

About the FICO survey

This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of FICO from August 27-29, 2024, among 2,092 U.S. adults ages 18 and older. Gen Z respondents were 18-27 years old; Millennials were 28-43 years old; Gen Xers were 44-59 years old; and Baby Boomers were 60-78 years old. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the sample data is accurate to within +/- 2.5 percentage points using a 95% confidence level. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables and subgroup sample sizes, please contact press@fico.com.

 

Dallas High School team from Pennsylvania wins 2024 National LifeSmarts Championship

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April 24, 2024

Media contact: National Consumers League – Melody Merin, melodym@nclnet.org, 202-207-2831

Washington, DC – Pennsylvania’s Dallas High School students were crowned the 2024 National Varsity LifeSmarts Champion in San Diego, California, this past Sunday, April 21. Coached by Kevin West, the Pennsylvania team consisted of Captain Marie Popielarz, Artem Smagin, Kareem Almeky, Riley Dewey, and Mahi Dohl.

Joining them in the final match was the Selah Gold FCCLA team from Selah, Washington. Members of the Washington team were Captain Hannah Christianson, Macie Ladd, Indiana Hilmes, and Hannah Rees, with Jeff and Dania Cochran serving as their coaches.

Rounding out the final four teams were the Crosby High School Bulldogs from Connecticut and the Country Clovers 4-H team from Delaware 4-H.

This year’s competition marked the 30th anniversary of LifeSmarts, the youth consumer education program of the National Consumers League. Forty-seven student teams—consisting of 230 students—traveled from across the country to compete over four days at the Hyatt Regency Mission Bay Spa and Marina in San Diego.

“This year’s Nationals was special because we are celebrating 30 years of the LifeSmarts program, with this year’s event being our largest competition to date,” said LifeSmarts Program Director Lisa Hertzberg. “I want to congratulate all the teams and their coaches who came to San Diego to compete, learn from each other, and have fun. Congratulations to this year’s winning team from Dallas High School in Dallas, Pennsylvania!”

LifeSmarts is an education and scholarship program run by the Washington, DC-based National Consumers League (NCL), the nation’s oldest consumer advocacy organization. It competitively tests junior high / middle school, and high school student’s knowledge of five topic areas including consumer rights and responsibilities, personal finance, health & safety, technology & workforce preparation, and the environment in online and in-person competitions using a quiz bowl-style format. LifeSmarts is available in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and in partnership with student leadership programs such as 4-H BPA, FBLA, FCCLA, and SkillsUSA.

Each student on the first-place team received a $1,500.00 scholarship; second-place team members received $1,000.00 scholarships; and third-place team members received $750 scholarships. Team members who placed fourth received gift cards.

Teens from each of the 47 teams represented at Nationals also competed as individuals, and the top-scoring student in each LifeSmarts topic received a $500 scholarship from NCL. The 2024 winners are:

  • Consumer Rights and Responsibilities: Maria Huck, West Virginia
  • Environment: Artem Smagin, Pennsylvania
  • Health and Safety: Martaja Powell, Alabama
  • Personal Finance: Blake Sullivan, Missouri
  • Technology and Workforce Preparation: Jeremiah Hawley, Wyoming

Coleman Mangham from Varsity Wild Card 1 (Tift County 4-H, Georgia) and Shelby Brewer from Massaponax High School in Virginia were awarded co-LifeSmarts Students of the Year. They each received $100 Amazon gift cards.

Winning recognition as LifeSmarts Coaches of the Year were Ginger Walters from Massaponax High School and Sahvanna Mease from Calhan High School Colorado. Both coaches received $100 Amazon gift cards.

LifeSmarts State Coordinators of the Year were awarded to Mary Hillmann of Minnesota, and Kay Johnson and Tammie McCarthy, both from Wisconsin.

The Sarah Weinberg LifeSmarts Memorial Scholarship, given each year to a student who demonstrates an extraordinary commitment to community service, was awarded to Marie Popielarz from Pennsylvania.

Many LifeSmarts teams entered the anti-counterfeiting digital poster contest, sponsored by Amazon. Winners of the digital poster contest were: School Without Walls, District of Columbia; Buffalo High School FBLA, Wyoming; Calhan High School Varsity, Colorado; Sweepstakes Team 3, Blair Oaks High School, Missouri; West Chicago High School, Illinois; JCHS FCCLA, Kansas; Tift County 4-H, Georgia; Sweepstakes Team 2, West Feliciana High School, Louisiana; Sweepstakes Team 4, Larimer County 4-H, Colorado; and Riverside High School / Hi-Point Career Center BPA, Ohio. Each team received a $100 cash prize.

Winners in the identity theft essay contest were Kyle Bakhsh – Sweepstakes Team 1 (Cobb County 4-H, Georgia); Parker Bennett – Sweepstakes Team 4 – Louisiana; Allie Higgins – Idaho;  Maria Huck – West Virginia, and Kristina Plank – Riverside High School/ Ohio Hi-Point Career Center BPA . Each received a $1,000 scholarship, courtesy of Norton.

Kenvue sponsored scholarships that were awarded to five students who excelled in educational and outreach efforts in OTC medicine safety. Winners were Alex Piscane, Florida; Chloe Doiron, Sweepstakes Team 2, West Feliciana High School Louisiana; Kyle Bakhsh, Sweepstakes Team 1, Cobb County 4-H, Georgia; Mahi Dohl, Dallas High School, Pennsylvania; and Natalie Rodriguez, Econoponax, Massaponax High School, Virginia.

The top teams in the TikTok/Instagram videos on OTC medicine safety garnered praise from the contest’s judges and were recognized with achievement certificates. The schools recognized were:

  • Sweepstakes 4- Colorado, Larimer County 4-H, Colorado
  • School Without Walls, Washington, DC
  • Gordon County 4-H Varsity, Georgia
  • Junction City High School FCCLA, Varsity WC 3, Kansas
  • John Marshall High LifeSmarts for Life, West Virginia
  • Minidoka County 4-H, Teal Taters 4-H Varsity, Idaho
  • Litchville-Marion High School, The Money Hounds, North Dakota
  • Dallas High School, Pennsylvania
  • Benton County 4-H, Norton WC 2, Arkansas
  • Pryor High School Tigers, Oklahoma
  • Blair Oaks High School Team Falcon, Sweepstakes Team 3, Missouri
  • Tift County 4-H, Varsity WC 1, Georgia

The LifeSmarts Team Spirit Award went to Odessa High School FBLA from Missouri. The team demonstrated outstanding camaraderie and great sportsmanship throughout the four-day championship.

Awards for best t-shirt design, Instagram contest, and meme and pin design were also announced. The best meme went to Francis Marion FBLA, Alabama. The People’s Choice t-shirt winner was JCHS FCCLA, Kansas and the LifeSmarts team t-shirt award went to West Virginia’s John Marshall High School. The Instagram contest winner was Odessa High School, Missouri. The inaugural LifeSmarts pin design contest was won by Gracie Erichsen of Junction City High School FCCLA, Kansas, and Landon Rourke and Layson Ferguson of West Feliciana High School, Louisiana.

“Students who come to Nationals are some of the most dedicated and competitive students in the country. Their knowledge of consumer topics is vast, which is commendable because that is the goal we set for the LifeSmarts program—to be well-informed consumers,” said NCL Chief Executive Officer Sally Greenberg. “The information they acquire through this program will help them become savvy and well-informed consumers.”

Sponsors of the 2024 National LifeSmarts Championship were Amazon, Kenvue, Norton, Discover, Tide, FICO, Comcast Universal, Melaleuca, AARP, Bayer, JP Morgan Chase, American Express, Washington State Employees Credit Union, and Zillow.

At Sunday’s closing ceremony, NCL announced that Chicago, Illinois will be hosting the 2025 National LifeSmarts Championship next year.

To learn more about NCL’s youth consumer education program, visit LifeSmarts.

Photos from the 2024 National LifeSmarts Championships can be found here.

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About the National Consumers League (NCL)

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization.  Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad.  For more information, visit nclnet.org.

Celebrating 30 years of educating youths on consumer topics, NCL’s LifeSmarts program heads to San Diego for its annual national competition

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April 17, 2024

Media contact: National Consumers League – Melody Merin, melodym@nclnet.org, 202-207-2831

Washington, DC – The 30th National LifeSmarts Championship, the youth consumer education program of the National Consumers League, kicks off tomorrow, Thursday, April 18, at Hyatt Mission Bay in sunny San Diego, California. The four-day annual event hosts students from across the United States competing for prizes while showcasing their knowledge of real-life consumer issues that focus on the five content areas: personal finance, consumer rights, technology and career readiness, health and safety, and the environment.

Each year, LifeSmarts competitors answer more than 3.5 million consumer questions about credit reports, recycling, nutrition, social media, state lemon laws, and everything in between. Students are quizzed on their knowledge of these subject areas during online competition. Top-performing teams then advance to statewide competitions, and state champion teams—as well as several wildcard teams—advance to the national championship held each year in a different American city.

This year’s competition in San Diego is set to be the largest event for the 30-year-old program—with 47 teams and 230 students from across the U.S. vying for prizes and the coveted championship title. Along with the students, 79 coaches and 80 volunteers will be joining the four-day event.

Last year’s competition—held in Cincinnati, Ohio—was won by the Maryknoll Spartans from Maryknoll High School in Honolulu, Hawaii, a first win for the Aloha State.

Visit the 2024 National LifeSmarts Championship for more information.

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About the National Consumers League (NCL)

The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, is America’s pioneer consumer organization.  Our mission is to protect and promote social and economic justice for consumers and workers in the United States and abroad.  For more information, visit nclnet.org.