By Nancy Bowman
Sometimes, there’s just not enough money in the budget to go around.
The decisions a person at times has to make on how to spend the money they do have can be a huge challenge.
Members of the 2021 Teen Leadership Academy in Tipp City in early June spent time taking a look at personal finances and participating in a poverty simulation game led by Richard Bender, chief financial officer of the United Way of Miami County, and Sean Ford, the organization’s chief executive officer.
During the simulation, a scenario was laid out and the students as a group were asked how they would spend a limited amount of money as they tried to balance work, finances and those unexpected expenses that arise in life.
Do they take a child to the doctor, approve a costly surgery for a pet, buy a birthday present for a friend’s party or approve preventive work on a car?
“It’s easy for me to talk about situations like this but the game requires the participants to think about each situation. What would you do, how do you make tough choices, would I actually do that if I was in that situation? These are some of the questions the teens have to consider while playing the game,” Bender said.
“I believe that the teens gain a better understanding of what it would be like to live day by day. The situations are ones that could be happening to their friends or neighbors. It helps them be more aware of what others may be going through,” Bender added.
The poverty simulation exercise was used to help prepare the teens as they were then asked to consider applications for grants from non-profit organizations and whether or not to approve each request. They had $5,000 provided through the Tipp City Foundation
Of 17 requests, the students chose to distribute money to 11 specific projects during a presentation program held on the final day of the week-long leadership academy.
Among the teens participating in this year’s Teen Leadership were those from Tippecanoe High School, Bethel High School and Troy Christian High School. Among them was Ethan Spencer.
“I was interested in this program because I wanted to look into the inner workings of city government. I had heard a lot of good things about the program from my former teammates on the soccer team, so I knew I had to apply,” Spencer said.
He said he learned “many valuable lessons” through the leadership program. “For example, Simon Patry taught me how to stay quiet in an argument. We learned how a committee can work smoothly from the Miami County commissioners,” Spencer said. “Liz Sonnanstine (Tipp City chamber director) taught us the most out of everyone we met. She taught myself and other leaders how to create connections, a valuable skill that we will use for the rest of our lives.”