LifeSmarts DC Training Camp a success – National Consumers League

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By Brandi Williams, LifeSmarts Program Manager

Reaching out to teens to get them excited about consumer education and personal financial literacy was our goal when the LifeSmarts team began developing LifeSmarts Training Camp in 2011. Training Camp was designed as an educational field trip to help students explore real-world applications of consumer knowledge, through games, activities, and a live LifeSmarts competition.

In January, the National Consumers League hosted the first Training Camp in the District of Columbia, and it was received with such success that we immediately began planning for a second DC-area camp to kick off the 2012-2013 program year.

This last Tuesday, NCL held a second District of Columbia LifeSmarts Training Camp! Hosted by our friends at Google Washington, DC, 12 teams of students and teachers from across the area joined us for full day of fun! Students and teachers spent the day working together in teams of five students and one coach on topic-focused activities and gained points and prizes throughout the day. Teams waited eagerly for the awards ceremony to discover which teams would be recognized for having the highest team scores.

The first-place prize went to McKinley Technical High School, coached by Melanie Wiscount. The team received movie passes, LifeSmarts t-shirts and flashdrives, and a pizza party, and the coach received a $100 gift card.

Prizes were also awarded to the second-place team, also from McKinley Technical High School, coached by Sarah Elwell, and the third place team, from Eastern High School, coached by Ricardo Neal.

Judges helped us determine our Spirit Award winner — the team that best showcased team spirit and good sportsmanship — which was awarded to the team from Archbishop Carroll High School, coached by Sonya Wilson.

Additionally, educators were entered into a random drawing for two $100 gift cards, which were ultimately awarded to coach Egheosa Ibginoba from Coolidge Senior High School and Chantell Moses from Theodore Roosevelt Senior High School.

There was so much energy and excitement throughout the room for the entire day! You can find photos of excited and engaged students by visiting and becoming a fan on Facebook. Students and teachers walked away from Training Camp excited about the knowledge they’d gained and ready to dive into the content of the LifeSmarts program.

Upcoming Training Camps are scheduled for November 9, 2012 in Denver, CO and January 5, 2013 in Atlanta, GA.  If you’re interested in joining, either with a team or as our guest, don’t hesitate to contact us. We’d love to see you there!