Professor Alicia Modestino was featured in a recent Wall Street Journal article highlighting the Jonathan Clements Getting Going on Savings Initiative—a new effort to help young people from low-income families become lifelong investors.
The program was launched by former WSJ personal finance columnist Jonathan Clements after receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis, with the goal of leaving a lasting legacy by giving young people the tools to build financial security early in life. The initiative combines financial education with $1,000 Roth IRA grants and will be studied by researchers to evaluate its long-term impact.
Modestino, affiliated with J-PAL and a leader in evaluating youth employment programs, noted the initiative’s potential to “add financial planning to [youths’] toolbox and sustain the positive impacts of the program into the long-term.”