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Citibank Hungary supports 'Economics for Leaders' Summer Program
 
Budapest, August 13th, 2008
 

Citibank Hungary helps improve Hungarian financial and economic education. Contribution from the Citi Foundation is funding an 'Economics for Leaders' program in Piliscsaba, near Budapest from August 10 - 16, for 30 Hungarian high school students, selected for their leadership potential, and 30 Hungarian high school teachers.

The week-long program is a subset of the 'Economics for Leaders' programs conducted by the Foundation for Teaching Economics (FTE) in the United States. Junior Achievement, Hungary - the FTE's partner in this program - selects students and teachers from all regions of Hungary to attend and also assists with the leadership instruction.

'Economics for Leaders' is designed to give Hungary's future leaders a better understanding of the free market system and the skills to motivate others. The program is also carefully designed to give the 30 high school social studies teachers, who come from all parts of Hungary, professional development training, showing them how to use interactive teaching techniques to make economics more understandable.

During the week, students will be given insight into economic behavior, an economic way of thinking about public policy choices, and an appreciation for different leadership styles. Teachers become better educators, leaving with new teaching strategies, a more complete understanding of economic concepts, and simulations, games and materials to make economics exciting to students. The staff includes both American and Hungarian instructors. There are no tuition fees for either students or teachers to attend.

The Foundation for Teaching Economics has been conducting Economics for Leaders programs in Hungary for the past 15 years with support from the Citi Foundation. Evaluation shows that both students and teachers leave with a better understanding of the economic forces that play such an important part in every day life. Most importantly, participants leave knowing the importance of distinguishing between value-based judgments and empirically verifiable ones.

"Citibank has been supporting this program for 15 years in Hungary and the success of the program proved that there is a great demand for economics-financial education as early as in the secondary schools", said Mr. Batara Sianturi, Citi Country Officer for Hungary. "In 2004 Citi and the Citi Foundation announced a 10-year $200 million global commitment to financial education. Based on the excellent fit of this program with our strategy and its success in the previous years, the Citi Foundation decided to continue supporting it in Hungary, the Czech Republic, Romania and Slovakia. The summer camp is an excellent opportunity for participants to acquire knowledge and learn to enjoy economics. By exploring the correlation between economics and leadership through rigorous and challenging activities, students are getting the skills that Hungary's future leaders need", he concluded.

Éva Hencz, Public Affairs Officer for Citi in Hungary, will give a presentation about communications at a global company.

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For further information regarding the Economics for Leaders program, please contact Orsolya Gergely at Junior Achievement Hungary at +36-62-552-858.

Note to the editors

The program has two components for students:

1. Economics classes, which present the principles of free enterprise. Teaching simulations are used extensively, and students learn to think critically about current social problems.
     
2. Leadership sessions, which challenge students with group problems that teach conflict resolution, communication skills, and different leadership approaches.

Teacher training is also an important goal:

1. Teachers observe the economics classes and learn, first hand, the benefit of teaching through interactive, experiential techniques.
     
2. Workshops provide teachers with an opportunity to further explore the economics simulations and to share other ideas and materials for teaching economics.

Citi

Citi, the leading global financial services company, has some 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 100 countries, providing consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, and wealth management. Citi's major brand names include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Smith Barney, Banamex, and Nikko. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com or www.citi.com.

Citi Foundation

The Citi Foundation is committed to enhancing economic opportunities for underserved individuals and families in the communities where we work throughout the world. Globally, the Citi Foundation is focusing its giving on Microfinance and Microentrepreneurship, which helps individuals become economically self-sufficient; Small and Growing Businesses, leading to economic expansion and job creation; Education, which prepares young people for personal and professional success; Financial Education, which helps individuals make informed financial decisions; and the Environment with a focus on sustainable enterprises that generate jobs and stimulate economic growth while preserving the environment. In the U.S. and Canada, the Citi Foundation supports Community Development programs that help build and revitalize neighborhoods and Education programs that prepare students for college and careers. Additional information can be found at http://www.citigroupfoundation.org/.

Foundation for Teaching Economics

The mission of the FTE is to introduce young individuals, selected for their leadership potential, to an economic way of thinking about national and international issues and to promote excellence in economic education by helping economics teachers become more effective educators.
The FTE is dedicated to emphasizing the important role of individuals as productive, responsible citizens in free societies. Our teacher and student training programs provide a small classroom setting where serious discussion can take place to better understand the free market system. Additional information about the FTE may be found at www.fte.org.

Junior Achievement Hungary

Junior Achievement Hungary (JAM) is a licensed franchise of Junior Achievement Worldwide. The foundation has been running its programs in Hungary since 1992. Eleven separate programs are currently being offered to more than 300 schools across Hungary. The mission of JAM is to provide students with the opportunity to learn about the business environment and free market economy through a dynamic partnership between businesses and schools. By attending these programs, students acquire knowledge and essential skills that will help them become educated consumers, more productive employees and more responsible members of the business community. For further information please visit our website at www.ejam.hu.

  
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