Wednesday, July 16, 2025
CVTC offers financial literacy help to students
Pang Garcia talks about what no one else will – money.
Garcia, a student involvement specialist at CVTC, is great at teaching others how to budget their money.
“Money is one of those things where nobody wants to talk about it,” she said. “It’s like a hush-hush thing, but it impacts every aspect of someone’s life, and it can either make or break somebody.
“People can make one decision without enough information, and that could change the trajectory of what happens and what follows them, financially, forever.”
CVTC began the Money Matters program in 2018 to give students a leg up on finances. Pang and her colleagues in the Student Life office held pop-ups for students in case they had questions or wanted to dig deeper about their budgets.
With students and staff at home during the COVID-19 pandemic, the program changed a bit, but today it’s a more robust program with additional opportunities for students to grow. Now, students have the ability to sign up for Money Matters through a Student Leadership Academy. It’s an additional level of support for students.
Garcia said student feedback on the budgeting tips has been well-received.
“People are always going to struggle with their budget,” she said. “I tell students that a budget is fairly simple. It’s about how much money they have coming in and how much money they have going out. But somehow they have this idea in their head that there has to be funds left over. And I say, ‘Well, it depends on how you look at it.’”
There are many different budget strategies, she said. Garcia reiterates that a budget means the income matches the expenses. But the first thing she teaches is that the goal comes first.
“It’s similar to school,” she said. “You don’t just go in and take random classes in hopes that you’ll get a degree. There’s a methodology to it. Before you even think about creating your budget, what is the goal that you want to work towards?”
Sidebar: Understanding budgets and debt
When students think about going to college, many times the first thing that comes to mind is how they will afford it. That’s why the Money Matters program includes discussions about FAFSA and other financial aid.
“When you're talking about personal finance, it's about understanding how the way you see money, the way you value money, and the emphasis you put on money could be different from someone else,” Garcia said. “Getting students to understand how they perceive money, the values they put on it, and their needs versus their wants are going to be different than someone else.
“Some standards are the same, but just understanding the psychology a little bit behind money, and then giving them the tools to build a budget plan and understand about how credit works is important,” Garcia said. “Whether they're new to it, in the thick of it, or trying to rebuild it, just giving them some tools and some tips will help.”
