On Tuesday, May 13, Business teacher Doris Curry collaborates with the SunTrust Bank (and by extension, the People’s Trust Federal Credit Union) to hold a reality fair in the cafeteria from 8 AM to 10 AM.

The fair is exclusive to business students, more specifically, Business Information Management, Global Business, and Principles of Business.

The students choose a week before and were given the average starting salary as if they just graduated college and their net income (after taxes are subtracted).

This income can then be used to buy various things at the booths, including, but not limited to: a house, a car, a pet, gym membership, spa membership, insurance, food, and to pay off loans.

There are volunteers and bank workers at each booth to explain how the students’ decisions affect them. The participants are also required to spin the “Wheel of Life,” which mirrors the unexpected situations in life. The students either gain money through a scholarship or a tax refund or lose money through an accident, speeding ticket, or identity theft.

This is an annual event for Business students and for the SunTrust Bank. However, the Bank not only sponsored a Reality Fair at Kerr, but also at two to three other schools every year.

According to the event’s overseers Linda Bist (from SunTrust) and Mike Read (from Credit Union), this event’s purpose is to raise awareness of the importance of personal finance management, saving, and protection. The Bank seeks to change students’ spending patterns before college and to teach them life lessons not normally obtained in classrooms.

It’s a hands-on realistic experience compressed into a simple, safe, fun, and comprehensive game.

For more information, see Curry.