Community Outreach
In addition to our one-on-one credit and housing counseling services, Cambridge has developed and instituted innovative and effective community outreach programs that have allowed us to provide our valuable financial literacy education to thousands of people throughout our area and across the country. Cambridge’s Education Department staff offers and conducts its seminars for social service agencies, traditional and vocational high schools, colleges, veterans groups, housing and homeownership assistance organizations, correctional authorities and other non-profit entities throughout Massachusetts and Connecticut.
Your Money 2.0
With more than 150 million Americans active on the Internet, Cambridge Credit Counseling has been increasing its online
education efforts. We launched our new online news program, Your Money 2.0, on
February 23, 2009. The weekly program highlights
the most relevant financial stories of the day, and provides insight as to how these events may affect the average consumer.
Weekly programs are
available on the company’s YouTube page,
www.youtube.com/CambridgeCredit, and are offered for free to
financially themed sites across the Internet. Along with our Your Money 2.0 webisodes, Cambridge has posted thirty educational
videos based on our organization’s Learn Now or Pay Later financial literacy series. Among the topics discussed are credit reports
and scores, the economy, budgeting, and identity theft. Since the first videos were posted on 4/25/08, our Youtube videos have been
viewed more than 28,700 times.
Money America Radio Program
Cambridge Credit Counseling and American International College (A.I.C.) co-produce a weekly radio program to help residents of
Western Massachusetts learn about the financial issues of the day. The radio show,
Money America, is hosted by Cambridge’s Community
Outreach Director, Thomas Fox, and by A.I.C. alum LaValle Smith, a nationally certified credit counselor. Money America debuted on
WAIC 91.9 FM at 7:00 p.m. on 5/3/09. Each week the program focuses on an important financial topic, including foreclosure prevention,
managing credit and debt more effectively, and a host of other timely issues. The public is encouraged to call in with questions.
The station broadcasts in the Springfield, MA area and on the Internet at
www.aic.edu/hot919. An estimated 20,000 listeners tune in
to the program each week.
The Cambridge Quarterly
Since 1997, Cambridge has sent all of its clients The Cambridge
Quarterly. This newsletter represented our first
efforts to educate the community, and its longevity is a testament to
its value. Four times a year our clients are provided
with valuable financial information, along with news about creditor
policy changes, federal and state law revisions, and other Cambridge educational
initiatives.
Learn Now Or Pay Later Guides
Our principal guidebook for adult consumers, the 69-page Financial
Wellness Guide, now in its second
edition, is distributed at no cost to
all consumers who complete a financial analysis. It is also
downloadable
for free by any consumer who accesses our website,
www.goodpayer.com. The guide
covers the fundamentals of credit and debt, budgeting, credit scores and
reports, re-establishing credit, dealing with bill collectors, and
establishing appropriate savings.
Our second edition financial guide for young adults also covers the
fundamentals of credit and debt, and also includes units on budgeting,
checking and checkbook reconciliation, saving and investing, credit
scores and reports, and the cost of credit. The young adult guides are
distributed at no cost to each of the high school, college, and
vocational school students who participate in our seminars, and are also
downloadable for free from our website,
www.goodpayer.com.
Goodpayer.com
Goodpayer.com contains
roughly 150 pages of articles covering a wide range of financial topics. It
also provides downloadable versions of our guidebooks and lesson plans, as
well as contact information for agencies that offer services beyond
Cambridge’s expertise.
Learnnoworpaylater.com
Learnnoworpaylater.com is an interactive financial information center
containing nine informational units on personal finance. There are a
series of quizzes available to test an individual’s knowledge. The
site’s most unique element is the electronically fillable budget
feature. Individuals can create, store, retrieve, calculate and adjust
their own budgets in the website’s secure environment.
Community Seminars
Every year, our staff conducts hundreds of free financial wellness
seminars throughout our area. We provide educational services to the Springfield chapter of
Habitat for Humanity, to residents of area homeless shelters, to
participants in several VA housing programs, as well as to students in
our local colleges, high schools and Job Corps. Pre-purchase seminars
for prospective homeowners are also offered by members of Cambridge’s Housing Counseling Department.
Click
Here to see a list of the seminars that we have conducted.
In-House Seminars
Beginning in 2009, Cambridge has offered free seminars in our office to the local public on the first Wednesday and third Thursday of each month. Topics include budgeting, tracking expenses, credit scores and reports, and the development of savings. Click Here to view our seminar schedule.
