Reality Day served as a reality check for students of Dartmouth High School.

On Thursday, April 14, more than 200 juniors participated in Reality Day, a day to imagine what their lives might look like at 25 years old.  Organizers of the event aimed to teach students about financial literacy. They learned the importance of credit scores, the potential dangers of credit cards, and about planning for retirement.

“It’s a little stressful,” said junior Hayley Forsblom. “It’s important to see how much things actually cost.”

In preparation, all students were asked to select a career from a list of more than 300 choices. A realistic salary was assigned to that career and students were given a savings account balance and a credit card with a designated limit. Credit scores for each student were assigned based on each individual student’s record of school absences and tardies.

“This was a really good experience for us to learn how it’s going to be in the real world,” said junior Megan Anderson.

Each student had a “spending plan” and was given the task of visiting 14 booths, manned by members of the business community, where they had to select items such as housing, transportation, furniture, personal luxuries, clothing and food, while staying within their budget. In addition, students were also asked to be mindful of such areas as savings, education, and part-time jobs. In this scenario, all students were also required to do community service.

“This is a really great event,” said Bay Coast Bank representative Carrie Novo-Suspiro. “The kids get a lot out of it and they do really well in all the interviews we have for the ‘part-time’ jobs.”

Bay Coast Bank sponsored and organized the event.

“I helped get members of the business community to come here,” said Amie Vieira. “It’s a lot of work, but it’s nice to give the students a taste in budgeting and preparation for the outside world.”

Credit counselors were available to provide guidance to students as needed and determined, at the culmination of the game, whether or not students had “won.” Winning would mean that the student had created a well-balanced life without running out of money.

Bay Coast Bank Assistant Vice President Rick Jalbert said he has been participating in Reality Day for 12 years, four of them at Dartmouth.

“We appreciate the fact that the students seem to care,” said Jalbert. “I’m trying to share my experiences with them. This is so enlightening to them as to how everything impacts their future.”

Bay Coast Bank Senior Universal Banker Tammy Verissimo said the program is a good reality check for young people.

“The students finally realize how much it costs to get things in life,” she noted.

The students were thankful for the opportunity.

“It gave exposure to real life situations,” said junior Noel Fuertes. “This helped a lot and now I have an idea of what to expect.”