LifeSmarts Rocks!

Award-winning consumer reporter Herb Weisbaum has been the Question Master at the National LifeSmarts Championship for 25 years. We asked him to share his thoughts about the program.

LifeSmarts is the highlight of my year. Seriously!

Sure, it’s fun to travel to different cities and spend time with old friends. But that’s not why I keep coming back. It’s because LifeSmarts is an amazing program that makes learning fun. It teaches high school kids (and yes, I call them kids) “life lessons” that they may not learn at school or home.

For some of these kids, going to the national finals is the first time they’ve been on a plane or been outside their state. LifeSmarts gives them the opportunity to explore the host city, learn some history, and maybe try some local food specialties. The kids also get to spend time— and get to know—students with completely different backgrounds.

The national competition is often intense, with the winner being decided by just one or two questions. And yet, the kids are always gracious in defeat, rushing across the stage to congratulate the winning team. We could use more of that in this world! They’re also polite and curious.

For me, one of the joys of serving as Question Master is to see students who start the program as freshman and come back year after year. Even after they head to college, some of these kids volunteer to help at the national competition. It’s fun to see these LifeSmarts alumni, and talk to them about where they’re going to school and the career paths they’ve chosen. This desire to stay connected to LifeSmarts demonstrates the impact this program has on participants.

I can’t say enough wonderful things about the teachers and parents who coach their students all year long and take them to the finals. They truly love these kids and develop a special bond with them.

The LifeSmarts staff is also AWESOME! They work all year to make this a meaningful and successful program at the local level. At the National LifeSmarts Championship, they’re lots of fun—always smiling—and know how to relate to the kids.

The LifeSmarts finals are designed to provide various opportunities for the students to shine. Some kids just aren’t good with the game show buzzer format. The T-shirt contest and public service video message competition allow teams to compete on creativity. Individual scholarships are awarded to the winners of the annual essay contest and for those who have mentored groups in their community about the safe way to use over-the-counter medicines.

LifeSmarts has grown dramatically during the last 30 years. There are new activities, more prizes, more scholarship money, and significantly more students taking part across the country. In April, we had 47 teams at the 2024 National LifeSmarts Championship in San Diego—the most ever! While the students and coaches pay for their airfare and hotel rooms, LifeSmarts awards $35,000 in travel stipends to help defray some of those costs.

LifeSmarts has so much to offer. Hopefully, it can continue to grow. I’d like to see more schools (even home schools) and more clubs (such as 4-H) take part. I strongly encourage educators and sponsors to learn more and get involved.

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Herb Weisbaum is a Contributing Editor at Checkbook.org and hosts Checkbook’s “Consumerpedia” podcast. During his distinguished career, Herb covered the consumer beat for CBS News, NBC News, and the TODAY show.