Now that I can put words to my $$ actions, it helps me to think about what I’m doing with my money.

g

t

a

g

t

GTA teaches young people how to identify where money habits factor into their unique life goals, constraints, risk tolerance and preferences. Students learn how to quantify the long-term costs of risky decisions, from buying lottery tickets and giving friends a discount at their part-time job, to choosing to participate in the high-risk informal economy.

Using money as a lens to talk about decision-making, Game Theory Academy:

• Improves participants’ ability to act in their best interest when making financial and other decisions.
• Increases the ability of young people to navigate the economy safely and intelligently.
• Reduces youth participation in risky means of accessing income by paying a stipend.
• Enhances the capacity of youth-serving organizations to offer a comprehensive range of services that get young people successfully through the critical transition to adulthood.

Since January 2009, over 340 students have completed the core Game Theory Academy class, and 92% said they’d recommend the class to a friend.

• 95% say GTA had strengthened their ability to make good decisions about money and 89% noted they already see a change in the way they make decisions
• 87% said the class put them in a better position to think for themselves when making money decisions.
• 95% reported that GTA’s class fulfills the mission of arming young people with better tools to make life decisions.
• 88% of the students remained with GTA through the end of the program. This level of participant retention is phenomenal among a population that has given up on an educational system that has failed them in the past.
• An overwhelming 98% said there is a need for more programs that teach young people about money.